Half Eagles
1799 $5 NGC MS61
Written/Compiled by Dennis
Hengeveld
The final half eagle with a 17xx date, the 1799
$5 gold piece is a rare issue which comes with estimated
mintages. The exact number of pieces struck is known, and
unlike other issues from this era estimates of the mintage
range widely. Some sources, like the Red Book quote the
number struck as 7,541 and that his also the number Breen
mentioned in his Encyclopedia, although he also mentioned
that more might have been struck. Other sources enlarge the
number struck by claiming that coins with this date were
struck well into 1801 and perhaps even in early 1802. This
does not seem unlikely at all, given the circumstances at
the early Philadelphia Mint. One obverse die is also known
to have paired on at least two different occasions with a
reverse die which was also used for coinage of 1800 half
eagles. Part of that variety was struck before the 1799
dated obverse die entered production once again, now for the
final time. Because of this and the number of pieces known
most modern sources have quoted the total number of pieces
struck between 9,000 and 15,000, with the correct number
probably somewhere in the middle. Of these, most sources
mention an estimated 185 to 250 pieces that are known to
exist for all varieties combined. Other sources mention
numbers as high as 300 to 400, but that appears to be an
extremely high estimate based on the number of auction
appearances and frequency of offerings. In all grades,
approximately 200 pieces could very well be the correct
number for this date according to our own research.
Nine different varieties are known for this
date, ranging in rarity from R-5 (forty to fifty known)
to R-7+ (six to eight known) in all grades. Four
different obverse dies were used for coinage, combined
with nine different reverse dies. One of the obverse
dies, the variety now identified as BD-4, was mentioned
in older literature to be a 1799/8 overdate. Modern
research, however, has proved that it appears to be a
minor repunched last nine, perhaps with a different
punch. This remains a point of discussion when more
people study this particular variety. The nine varieties
can be divided into two separate groups, based on the
size of the reverse stars above the head of the eagle.
Seven varieties have small reverse stars, which is the
more frequently encountered variety. Two more were
struck with large reverse stars, which appear much less
frequently. For some varieties it is difficult to place
them in one of the two groups, and other characteristics
are noted for identifying the reverse variety.
The reverse dies of the half eagles of 1795 to 1807 are
believed to be engraved by two persons. The first was
John Smith Gardner, who is known to have engraved the
first reverse dies used for coinage. Later varieties are
believed to have been the work of Chief Engraver Robert
Scot, who is believed to have much more influence in the
early United States Mint. His reverse style is believed
to have been used from 1799 onwards. There are many
differences between the two engravers, mostly apparent
in the eagle’s neck and the arrangement of the stars.
Other differences are found in the number of vertical
lines in the shield and the presence or absence of a
tongue in the beck of the eagle.
The arrangement of the reverse stars has been
well-documented in modern reference books on early American
gold coins. Gardner used a so-called cross pattern to
arrange the stars, while Scot placed them in an arc pattern.
When viewed side to side, the difference is obvious, but on
individual varieties they are sometimes hard to identify as
a given star arrangement. Scot’s arc pattern was used on the
majority of known reverse dies from 1799 and onwards, while
Gardner is believed to have only engraved three of the 1799
reverse dies. Except by specialists the difference are
usually not noted. They do, however, give insight into the
working process of the late 18th century Philadelphia Mint
and should thus be considered valuable information for many
researchers.
As for the quality of the pieces which appear at
auction this coin is similar to other half eagles of this
type and era. Uncirculated examples are rare, especially in
grades MS-63 and higher. Many pieces are damaged, were
mounted into jewelry or harshly graded over time, and
finding a lightly circulated example with no problems
appears to be difficult. The centers of most varieties are
often weakly struck, although it is possible to find a
sharply struck representative of this date with intensive
searching, which might take many years.
