GR-1, R-1. Housed in an old “fatty” holder and in my opinion, at least an AU53 to AU55 by today’s standards.

The 1839-O half dollar is a popular standalone issue. It is the only collectible mintmarked half dollar of the short-lived Reeded Edge type, and its demand spreads across many types of collectors. It isn’t rare in AU grades but examples in holders have been cleaned and processed. Locating a choice, original piece with character is hard.

The obverse is a dusky natural golden-grey with splashes of red in the left field and a crescent of deep blue at the top. The reverse is a darker blend of blue, green and russet. Both sides show luster, have excellent detail and lack the problems nearly always seen on circulated 1839-O half dollars.

As a basis of comparison, the last two AU 53 1839-O half dollars to sell at auction, both very low end in my opinion, brought $3,057 (NGC; ex Heritage 9/13: 3807) and $3,525 (PCGS; ex Stacks Bowers 5/13: 1298).

After years of neglect, the 1839-O half dollar has come into its own and risen in price accordingly. Still, really nice examples with all the bells and whistles seem like good value, especially considering the high level of demand for such coins.