1872-S $5 (1872-S Half Eagle) NGC AU55. This fresh and original Western branch mint 1872-S Half Eagle has a strong peripheral strike with full details seen on the centers of the stars. Sufficient separation between the lines of Libertys coronet and hair and the hair over the eye exists to warrant the grade. A small scratch is noted next to the eagles beak for the sake of accuracy. Some mint luster remains in protected areas on both sides of the coin.

The Liberty Head (Motto on Reverse) half eagle was minted from 1866 to 1908. It was designed by Christian Gobrecht and showed Liberty wearing a coronet as she faced left in profile. Her hair is tied in the back with beads while two loose curls flow down her neck. She is surrounded by thirteen six-pointed stars with the date below. Dentils are near the edge of both sides of the coin. The reverse of the coin shows the heraldic eagle with its head turned to the left. In its talons it holds an olive branch and arrows, symbols of peace and preparedness. Above its head on a banner, the motto IN GOD WE TRUST was added. The denomination is below. In addition to dentils, the coin has a reeded edge.

In March, 1865, a coinage act was passed that required that the motto be added to all coins large enough to accommodate it. The Mint interpreted this to mean for gold coinage the half eagle, the eagle, and the double eagle. The Liberty Head (Motto on Reverse) half eagle was created as a result of this mandate. (All silver coins larger than a dime also had the motto added.)
The San Francisco Mint opened in 1854 because of the need to coin gold resulting from the California Gold Rush. In the West there was an abundance of gold bullion, nuggets and dust; however, there was also an acute shortage of circulating coinage. Congress authorized this mint to relive the shortage and coin silver and gold and because transportation of bullion to Philadelphia was time consuming and hazardous. Because of its proximity to the Gold Rush area, San Francisco was chosen as the site of the new mint. In 1874 it moved into a new building called the Old United States Mint or the Granite Lady. It is one of the few structures that survived the earthquake of 1906. It remained in service as a mint until 1938, when the present facility opened.

In 1826 Gobrecht did his first work for the Mint as an assistant to Engraver William Kneass. After Kneass 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 sliver coinage including the half dime, dime, quarter dollar, half dollar and sliver 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.