Bill Jones' Basic Type set
1/2C CORONET (1849-1857)

Owner Comments:

The Braided Hair half cent had the same design as the large cents of the period. Christian Gobrecht devised the design, which was similar to the one he used on the $2.50, $5.00 and $10.00 gold coins. The mint introduced the Braided Hair design in 1840, but half cents were only stuck as Proof coins until 1849. All of these Proof half cents are very rare, and most collectors have never seen a genuine example.

By the 1840s the half cent had become a very unpopular coin, and few pieces were seen in circulation. By the time the first Braided Hair half cents were placed in circulation the public had very little use for them. As a result most of these coins are rarely in seen in grades lower than Very Fine, and vast majority of undamaged Braided Hair half cents grade Extremely Fine or better.

This 1855 half cent is a very attractive example with considerable mint red. This piece has none of the distracting spots that often plague Mint State coins of this type, and there is considerable cartwheel luster on both sides. It is decidedly a premium example for the grade.