With the exception of the 1861, all the Civil War era Philadelphia half eagles are rare and this is clearly the case with the low mintage 1862-P. Only 60 or so are known from the 4,430 originally made and this date tends to either come in very low grades (VF) or in the upper ranges of AU. It is likely High R-7 in Uncirculated with just two or three known; all in the MS60 to MS61 range.

This choice example shows “old time” russet and amber color with slightly brighter hues on the obverse than the reverse. The obverse is quite choice with good details and the appearance of a 45 coin; the reverse is a bit “ticky” with some marks in the fields including a vertical abrasion below OF.

The only problem-free EF40 1862 half eagle to sell in many years was a non-CAC NGC coin which sold for $4,113 as Heritage 7/13: 3363. The last EF45 to sell at auction was back in April 2009.

The 1862 half eagle is an issue which has become very popular in recent ears due to its incontestable rarity and its Civil War issuance.

This is the only example which CAC has approved in this grade; one finer (AU55) has been approved.