1839-C Half Eagle - 1839-C $5 NGC AU55. This Southern branch, Choice AU 1839-C Half Eagle has subdued mint luster remaining in protected areas. The strike is above average with strong details on some of the stars, Libertys hair, and the eagles neck. Just a bit of wear keeps this coin from an Uncirculated grade. The surfaces are original and show abrasion marks that are consistent with the grade.

Christian Gobrecht designed the Liberty Head half eagle. The mintmark for the first year was located on the obverse just below the truncation. On all later issues it was located on the reverse.

When Mint Engraver William Kneass was unable to resume his duties after a debilitating stroke, Christian Gobrecht was asked to do his work, which included making a new half eagle that would be uniform with the eagle. The Liberty Head half eagle with no motto was minted from 1839 to 1866.

Gobrechts design shows a left facing profile of Liberty wearing a LIBERTY inscribed coronet. Her hair is tied in the back and there are two loose curls that hang down her neck. Around the head are thirteen six-pointed stars, and the date is below the truncation. At the periphery of the coin are dentils. The coin also has a reeded edge. The reverse shows a heraldic eagle similar to the one on the Classic Head eagle. The inscription UNITED STATES OF AMERICA surrounds the eagle, except for its wing tips, in an arc. The denomination is below, separated with dots, and written as FIVE D.

Christian Gobrecht became the third Chief Engraver at the United States Mint. He was born in Hanover, Pennsylvania in 1785. His father was a German immigrant, and his mother traced her ancestry to the early settlers of Plymouth, Massachusetts. Gobrecht married Mary Hewes in 1818. One of his early positions was as an engraver of clocks in Baltimore. Later he went to Philadelphia where he became a banknote engraver. He invented a machine that allowed one to convert a three-dimensional medal into an illustration.

This was an excellent job and Gobrecht was understandably reluctant to work for the Mint for less money than he was making at the engraving firm. In order to persuade him to leave, Mint Director Robert Patterson prevailed upon Chief Engraver William Kneass, who had had a stroke, to take less in salary so more money would be available to hire Gobrecht on a permanent basis. In 1826 Gobrecht did his first work for the Mint as an assistant to Kneass. After Kneass illness, Gobrecht did all the die and pattern work for the Mint. He became Chief Engraver in 1840 and served until his death in 1844. He was famous for his Liberty Seated motif which was used for all denominations of silver coinage including the half-dime, dime, quarter dollar, half dollar and silver dollar. He also designed the Liberty Head gold eagle, a motif that was also used on the half-cent, the cent, the gold quarter eagle, and the gold half eagle. 

The 1839-C Half Eagle is a popular coin because of its obverse mintmark. In its population report, NGC shows 17 in AU55 condition with 21 better. At PCGS there are 7 with 12 better, and these numbers do not account for crossovers and resubmissions.