One of the rarer gold half eagles, the Classic Head was produced from 1834 to 1838. The coin was worth $5 during its time of use. Today, the average Classic Head can fetch anywhere from a few hundred dollars to several thousand. If kept in excellent condition, these gold coins may be worth tens or even hundreds of thousands of dollars.

History

The Classic Head half eagle was initially minted to combat a disturbing trend that arose in the early 1830s. People were selling gold coins for cash overseas because their gold content was worth more than their face value. The Coinage Act of 1972 had fixed the ratio of silver to gold at 15:1 in the United States. However, due to wars and trade issues with China, the ratio in Europe rose to 16:1. People made large sums of money by trading each $5 gold coin for about $5.25 in silver and pocketing the difference.

The U.S. government happened to have significant gold reserves at the time from mining in the hills of North Carolina and Georgia, so it decided to release new Half Eagle coins into the market. The government reduced the coin’s ratio of gold to copper from 92:8 to 90:10 to combat the growing trend. It also reduced the coin’s diameter from 25 mm to 22.5 mm. This would be the most substantial change made to the Half Eagle in its 134 years of use from 1795 to 1929.

Appearance

The Classic Head Half Eagle was designed by Engraver William Kneass. The reverse of the coin contained the same spread-winged eagle seen on many other gold coins of the early 1800s, though notably the words “E PLURIBUS UNUM” were removed in order to help the public distinguish the new coins from the old. It clutches an olive branch in one claw and three arrows in the other, and its breast is covered by a shield. The words “UNITED STATES OF AMERICA” are printed along the top rim of the reverse face, and the coin’s denomination of “5 D.” is engraved at the bottom.

On the obverse side, Kneass designed the head of Lady Liberty to have a more youthful, classic appearance. Her face appears skinnier, and she has a sharper, narrower nose. Her head is surrounded by flowing curls, and her headband is emblazoned with the word “LIBERTY.” Thirteen six-point stars, representing the original thirteen colonies, line the top rim of the obverse face. The coin’s mint year is engraved at the bottom.

Types

The Classic Head Half Eagle was minted between 1834 and 1838. Two varieties exist of the 1834 mint; three exist of the 1838 mint. The other years have just one type each. The coin was minted in Philadelphia between 1834 and 1837. In 1838, some Classic Head $5 coins were minted in Dahlonega and some in Charlotte. These are marked with a C or D above the date.

The 1834 coin had a rare Crosslet 4 issue, meaning that about 7% of these Half Eagles had a wider horizontal line on the 4 of the date. These are understandably worth more than the Plain 4 issue, which accounts for about 93% of 1834 Classic Head Half Eagles.

Prices

Depending on the condition of your coin, it may be worth quite a bit of money. Numismatists judge coins on a scale of G, or Good to MS, or Mint State. Read here for helpful information about numismatic coin grading. These prices represent a range from G through MS60, the lowest grade level for a mint state coin.

1834 Plain 4 – $480 – $4560
1834 Crosslet 4 – $750 – $24,380
1835 – $480 – $4750
1836 – $480 – $4750
1837 – $480 – $4810
1838 – $480 – $4750
1838 C – $1310 – $44,380
1838 D – $920 – $28,130

Sources:

Coin Link
Wiki Coins
Coin Week

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