Owner Comments:
1877 Half Dollar Babrer Liberty Head
Judd-1524, Pollock-1690
Rarity: Low R.7, PR63
Struck in silver with a reeded edge
Obverse: Head of Liberty with six stars to the left, seven to the right, and the date below. Liberty wears a wide-banded cap with the word LIBERTY, hair tied back with a ribbon. The cap is garnished by wheat and cotton.
Reverse: An eagle on a shield inside a band that carries the dual mottoes IN GOD WE TRUST and E PLURIBUS UNUM in Gothic script. Around is the legend UNITED STATES OF AMERICA with HALIF DOLLAR below.
Comments: There is a rich shade of olive-gray toning that is accented by wisps of overlying gold. Smooth, assertively struck surfaces, furthermore, retain hints of underlying reflectivity.
Due to their rarity and beauty, the various pattern half dollar issues of 1877 have always been highly coveted by advanced collectors. Moreover, the surviving population of this very rare pattern likely numbers no more than ten specimens. As a result Pollock lists two variants of this obverse die in silver, one with the second 7 far from the dentils (Pollock-1690) and one with the second 7 close to the dentils (Pollock-1692).
Provenance/Appearances:
From a private sale; Priors
- Steve Ivy Dec 1980 (The Thomas Moore Sale) / Lot #1853;
- Robert L. Hughes July 1980 (The Great 80 Sale) / Lot #104,
- Stacks Nov 2009 (74th Anniversary Sale) / Lot 1745
It should be noted that both the Ivy and Huges sales claimed this was the Garrett example that sold prior however the images did not prove this out and believe this was not correct statement