1792 half disme

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The obverse and reverse of a 1792 half disme.

The 1792 half disme was an American silver coin with a face value of five cents. Although it was an experimental issue, which President George Washington referred to as "a small beginning," many of the coins eventually were released into circulation. It is widely (although not universally) considered the first United States coinage struck under authority of the Mint Act of April 1792.^[1]

1 Origins
2 Production, rarity, and value
3 See also
4 Notes
5 External links

[edit] Origins

When speaking to the House of Representatives in November 1792, President Washington mentioned the "want of small coins in circulation" and stated that he had begun work on establishing a U.S. Mint and that some half dismes had been produced already. At this point, most of the personnel had been hired, but the Mint's buildings and machinery were not yet ready. As a result, the half dismes, which had been struck in or around July 1792, were produced using the private facilities of local craftsman John Harper, although under the auspices of official Mint personnel. In his personal log book, Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson recorded the receipt of 1,500 specimens on July 13.

Because of President Washington's connection with these early coins, numismatic folklore holds that the portrait on the obverse is that of First Lady Martha Washington and that some of the coins were struck using melted-down silverware from the Washington household. However, there is no solid evidence for either of these assertions.

[edit] Production, rarity, and value

Although the exact number is not known, it is believed that between 2,000 and 3,500 specimens were produced. Approximately 10% of these survive today; one expert estimated between 250 and 400 half dismes exist, and most appear to have been used in circulation for some time. An almost uncirculated (AU55) 1792 half disme was auctioned for $138,000 on July 24, 2004.^[2] A specimen strike from the Starr collection, graded MS67 by PCGS (and probably the finest known), sold for $1,322,500 on April 26, 2006.^[3]

Although most 1792 half dismes were produced in a silver alloy, a few pattern pieces in copper and other metals are known to exist.