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Coin and Paper Money Collecting/unusual 1909 barber half dollar

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Expert: - 6/25/2010


Question

Unusual Barber half do
Hi, Can you give any info on this coin? Like if it is a commemorative, how it was made, any thing. It looks like the face was professionally pressed out, that's why I think it may be a commemorative. Here is the story about the coin. In the early 60’s we lived near a  small gas station / store in Connecticut. One day when my mother was in the store, there was an elderly man trying to buy a loaf of bread, he asked the cashier if she would take this coin. The cashier said no. My mother over heard the conversation and asked the man if she could see the coin. She offered him two dollars for it mainly because the coin was the same year her father was born. She also asked were he got it, and he said "I can’t tell you". He accepted the two dollars, and that was the last she seen of him. My step father, to my mother’s dismay put the hole in it so she could were it as a necklace. Thank you for your response.

Best Regards
William

Answer
William,

What you have is a neat piece of hand-made artwork.  Someone -- perhaps the elderly man -- took a normal 1909 half and pushed out the metal from the back side to sculpt the image of Miss Liberty that you see.  This may have been dome manually of mechanically.

I have seen this done on other coins -- mostly older silver coins, because the clad coins tend to have the copper come through the clad layer when they have this done to them.

Neat artwork but no longer a collectible coin -- I would estimate value at about $30

Dan

Dan Moore

Expertise

My strong familiarity with all U.S. Mint coins, extensive reference library, and close relationships with many other dealers allows me to identify just about any coin made in the USA. I receive regular updates to all the current price guides -- both wholesale & retail -- to provide accurate values. So, with a good description or pictures, I should be able to identify and value any U.S. coin you have.

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