U.S. Mint coin reference

1860–1873: Liberty Seated Silver Half Dime (Variety 3: Legend on Obverse, Wreath Reverse)

Seated Liberty half dime series.

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Coin specifications and design

Years made: 1860-1873

Country: United States

Denomination: Half dime

Category: Circulating coin

Composition: 90% silver, 10% copper

Silver fineness: 90%

Weight: 1.24 g

Diameter: 15.5 mm

Thickness: Approx. 0.8 mm

Edge: Reeded

Designer: Christian Gobrecht design; later relief revisions associated with Robert Ball Hughes

Design identification

Obverse: Liberty seated on a rock holding shield and pole.

1860–1873: Liberty Seated Silver Half Dime (Variety 3: Legend on Obverse, Wreath Reverse) history

1860–1873: Liberty Seated Silver Half Dime (Variety 3: Legend on Obverse, Wreath Reverse) moves UNITED STATES OF AMERICA to the obverse and introduces a larger cereal wreath on the reverse. The redesign created more room around HALF DIME and gave the denomination its final major layout.

The reduced 1.24-gram .900-silver standard continued. Production ended in 1873 as the five-cent nickel increasingly displaced the half dime in commerce.