 1792 Half Disme. Very Fine in strict terms of actual circulation. This planchet is slightly ovoid, 17.4 x 16.9mm and wear on the reverse is most evident at the lowest part. This obverse shows wear on the highest points of Liberty's head with a very crisply defined legend, LIB. PAR. OF SCIENCE & INDUSTRY with hint of re-engraving on the 'Y' and a field mark below that letter. The reverse legend 'UNI'. STATES OF AMERICA shows re-engraving on 'F A' and the denomination HALF DISME shows a softer impression than the other lettering.
The Half Disme was struck before the new Philadelphia Mint staff had met the stringent cash bonds required by Congress. The institution was not officially open and some researchers believe that the Half Dismes and pattern coins of 1792 were struck at Harper's saw manufactory near the Mint building.
Numismatic cataloguer Dr. J. Hewitt Judd listed this denomination among the Pattern coins of this year, Judd 7. However, more than 1,500 Half Dismes are believed to have been struck, and the vast majority entered circulation. The number of survivors is much smaller, many surviving in distinctly lower grade than the present example.
Legends swirl around this first circulating U.S. coin, including the 19th century belief that Martha Washington posed as Liberty and that Washington's personal silver plate supplied the metal for the coinage. In fact, Washington did contribute silver to the Mint and made specific reference to the Half Disme coinage in his State of the Union Address. Here is a wholly acceptable example of one of America's most historic coins, sure to be the keystone of some outstanding collection.
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