1851-O Half Eagle - 1851-O $5 NGC AU55 CAC. This Southern branch mint, Choice AU 1851-O Half Eagle is the finest known at CAC. The coin has smoldering mint luster within its devices. The strike is above average with full details on the peripheries of both sides. The centers of the stars are sharply struck as are the legends of the reverse. Just a touch of wear keeps this coin from a Mint State grade. The surfaces are original and clean for the grade with no notable abrasion marks. The CAC sticker confirms that the coin is a premium quality piece and fully merits the grade assigned.

The New Orleans Mint was authorized in 1835 by President Andrew Jackson, hero of the battle of New Orleans. The bill that Jackson signed also authorized the mints at Charlotte and Dahlonega. William Strickland, a Philadelphia architect designed all three branch mint buildings. The New Orleans Mint building was made in the solid, bulky Greek Revival style of architecture. It was the largest of the three branch mints and located at major port of entry. Unfortunately Strickland did not account for the soft ground around the site. Because of it, the building had to undergo numerous repairs throughout its history.

Authorized to produce gold and silver, the New Orleans Mint struck quarter eagles and dimes in 1839. It operated from 1838 to 1909. In that time period 427 million silver and gold coins with the O mintmark were coined. By the mid 1850s denominations made in New Orleans included three-cent silver pieces, half-dimes, dimes, quarters, half dollars, silver dollars, gold dollars, quarter eagles, three-dollar pieces, half eagles, eagles, and double eagles. The first deposit was of Mexican dollars which amounted to more than 32,400 dollars. The first coins struck were Liberty Seated dimes. Each year between the beginning of August and the end of November, the mint closed because of the annual outbreak of yellow fever.

In 1826 Gobrecht did his first work for the Mint as an assistant to William Kneass. After Kneass suffered a debilitating stroke, 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 1851-O half eagle is an exceedingly rare coin in Mint State. Only 8 Uncirculated pieces have been certified by both grading services. The large number of AU58s at NGC is probably a result of many resubmissions attempting to achieve a Mint State grade. In its population report, NGC shows 16 in AU55 with 25 better. At CAC, as of June 2012, the present piece is the finest known.