Despite its small mintage of 9,000 coins, the 1875-S is a forgotten scarcity in the SF With Motto half eagle date run. There are an estimated 80-90 pieces known, mostly in the EF40 to AU55 range. Properly graded AU55 to AU58 examples are very rare and undervalued while this date is unique in Uncirculated (a PCGS MS63 from the Bass collection which later upgraded to MS64 at NGC).

This fresh-to-the-market example is really high end for the date and grade with fully original medium orange and green-gold colors on the obverse and reverse. The surfaces are far cleaner than usual and this is among the few known which hasn’t been processed and stripped. As on all known examples, the mintmark is small and faint and the ribbon below WE TRUST has been polished off at the mint.

A small number of overgraded AU55 examples were sold at auction in the last two years, mainly as part of the Bentley holdings. I can not recall the last properly graded AU55 1875-S I have seen or sold.

In this grade, this is a rarer coin than the coveted 1875-CC and at around half the price. An important SF half eagle for the savvy specialist.

This is the only CAC approved 1875-S $5.00 in this grade with none finer.