1806 50c O-105 Repunched Letter

[russellhome]

This 1806 half dollar has a boldly repuched "T" in Liberty. As I've recently learned, all outer devices (letters, stars, deticles, etc) on the early dies were punched or cut out by hand on the working dies. Only the center design was pressed onto the working die from a hub. This made for lots of interesting varieties. Yet - I'm still impressed with the craftsmanship involved. The Overton ID for this particular die variety is O-105.

http://www.idsimis.com/photos2/half1806obv.jpg

This variety is not too tough to spot. It is more visible than most of the over-dates of the period.

http://www.idsimis.com/photos2/half1806obvcu.jpg

I don't know what the cause was, but the reverse of this variety is always weak on the right side clouds and stars. I saw an AU example of this coin on eBay and it too is nearly missing the right-most cloud and nearby stars. I know weak spots like this on early US coinage was a common thing. Does anybody know why?

http://www.idsimis.com/photos2/half1806rev.jpg

[JamesWiles]

The opposing section of the obverse die is the deepest part of the design. So the metal is being pulled into it instead of the reverse design. Remember metal flows into the area of least resistance. Furthermore, I believe these were minted on the screw press, which is not easy to get a good strike from anyway.