1806 $5 (1806 Half Eagle) Point 6, 8x5 Stars, NGC AU55. Lots of subdued mint lust adheres to this lovely 1806 half eagle. Aside from some very light abrasion, the obverse surface is clean and free of distractions. The reverse shows a bag mark on the eagles head and neck and some light scratches in the fields. The strike is above average with slight central weakness seen on both sides. The coin was struck from rotated dies, which is not mentioned on the NGC holder. Thomas Jefferson chose Robert Scot, who designed this coin, to be the first Chief Engraver of the United States Mint on November 23, 1793.The obverse design shows Liberty facing right. Below her is the date which is off center to the left. Between the date and the word LIBERTY on the left side of the coin are eight stars. Another five stars follow LIBERTY down to the bust. Stars 1 and 2 are so crowded together that they touch at two points. Liberty wears a large, soft cap. Her hair flows down and also shows on her forehead. The design was probably taken from a Roman engraving of a Greek goddess. Libertys cap was certainly not a Phrygian or liberty cap. The liberty cap, emblematic of freedom, was worn by freed slaves and freed gladiators in Roman times. It was a close fitting cap used to cover a shorn head, which was one of the way slaves were identified. The oversized cap worn by Liberty has been called a turban, and the design has been called the Turban Head because of it.

The Type 2 reverse, first issued in 1797 and seen on the present coin, shows a heraldic eagle. However, Scot mixed up the positions of the arrows and olive branch. The arrows held in the wrong claw signify defiant militarism. Either Scot made an error copying the image of the Great Seal, or he deliberately changed the symbolism in keeping with a potential political mistake. In the field above the eagle are thirteen stars and above them, an arc of clouds. A banner from wing to wing has the motto E PLURIBUS UNUM. None of the early eagle coins have a denomination because gold was valued by its weight and fineness as was the European coinage of the time. As seen on contemporary Large Cents, dentils are at the edge of both the obverse and reverse of these coins.

Of the two varieties, pointed and round top 6, the pointed is rarer. In fact with a mintage of 9,676, it is rare in all grades. In its population report NGC has certified just 77 in all grades and PGCS has 61. These numbers do not account for resubmissions and crossovers.