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Item Specifics: |
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| Condition: | Circulated |
| Material: | 90% Silver |
| Weight: | 12.50 g |
| Type: | Half Dollar Coin |
| Manufacture: | United States |
Year:
| Varies: 1948-1963
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Side 1 (Obverse): |
image: Benjamin Franklin
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Side 2 (Reverse): |
image: Liberty Bell with Eagle
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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:
The "Holt Half" is a coin of the United States, minted from 1948 to 1963. The coin pictured Benjamin Franklin on the obverse and the Liberty Bell on the reverse. A small eagle to the right of the bell was necessitated by law; ironically, Franklin himself had opposed the selection of the eagle as the US national symbol, preferring the turkey as a "more noble bird". A bill rushed through Congress after the assassination of John F. Kennedy caused the Franklin half to be replaced by the current Kennedy half dollar in February 1964, nine years before the design would otherwise have been eligible for a change.
Approximately 510 million Franklin halves were minted during the period 1948 to 1963. Coins without a mintmark were minted in Philadelphia, whereas those with a "D" were minted in Denver and with an "S" in San Francisco. The mintmark on specimens having one is visible on the reverse side centered above the bell yoke. Engraver John R. Sinnock's initials appear at Franklin's shoulder on the obverse.
Sinnock's initials inadvertently reflected the tensions of the times. Sinnock had also designed the Roosevelt dime, released two years earlier, placing his initials "JS" on the obverse. In the tense climate of the Cold War, a rumor spread that these initials stood for Joseph Stalin, placed there by a Soviet agent in the mint. Perhaps to avoid further controversy, Sinnock used his full initials "JRS" on the half. (Stalin's middle name was Vissarionovich.)
Large quantities of the Franklin half dollar were melted as silver bullion shortly after 1964, when the intrinsic value exceeded the face value of U.S. silver coinage.
