Kennedy half dollar

[The Monkey God]

JFK was famously assassinated in Dallas Texas on November 22nd 1963. Almost everyone, not just Americans, can tell you what they were doing when they heard the news about JFK's assassination. The USA has a convention, if not a law, that living persons are never portrayed on their coins. This dates back to the American Revolution and the power of monarchies. The designs on US coins intended for circulation are only changed very infrequently, so it was with surprising speed that the US government decided to put his head onto the half dollar, and do so the very next year.

1964 is the definitive date of Kennedy half dollars, it was the last of the all-silver US half dollars, and the original Kennedy memorial coin. Later dates of Kennedy halves are silver clad or base metal. The 1964 Kennedy is the only one struck in 90% pure silver.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kennedy_half_dollar

Edited July 13, 2009 by The Monkey God

[mariner]

Are these legal tender in the US, or just collectors items?

[bigjarofwasps]

Are these legal tender in the US, or just collectors items?

Assume so......... :rolleyes:

[Tim B]

Yes, still legal tender, though you don't see them in circulation as much anymore. Depends on the circles they are distributed in I guess.

It's kind of like $2. bills, they went out of circulation and then after a makeover in 1976, they came back. You don't normally see them in everyday circulation, but up here the ferry service uses them for change all the time.

If you're into .50 pieces, might I suggest something a bit older, more collectable with a higher investment potential, though still quite affordable?

Tim

Both .50; you don't need to buy slab coins but being graded, they hold/appreciate their value nicely.

Walking Liberty & Ben Franklin Half Dollars:

[mariner]

Yes, still legal tender, though you don't see them in circulation as much anymore. Depends on the circles they are distributed in I guess.

It's kind of like $2. bills, they went out of circulation and then after a makeover in 1976, they came back. You don't normally see them in everyday circulation, but up here the ferry service uses them for change all the time.

If you're into .50 pieces, might I suggest something a bit older, more collectable with a higher investment potential, though still quite affordable?

Tim

Both .50; you don't need to buy slab coins but being graded, they hold/appreciate their value nicely.

Walking Liberty & Ben Franklin Half Dollars:

Thanks for your reply. Have a few silver eagles, but not come across the Franklin dollars, are they solid silver (.900 or more?), whats the story behind the Omaha bank hoard?

Edited July 14, 2009 by mariner

[bigjarofwasps]

Thanks for your reply. Have a few silver eagles, but not come across the Franklin dollars, are they solid silver (.900 or more?), whats the story behind the Omaha bank hoard?

Franklin dollars

Designers: John R. Sinnock (obverse & reverse), John Frederick Lewis (sketch for reverse model)

Composition: 90% Silver, 10% Copper

Weight: 12.50 grams

Diameter: 30.6 mm

Edge: Reeded

Notes: The first year of issue for the Franklin Half Dollar. This series replaced the popular Walking Liberty Half Dollar series which ended in 1947.

Have scant info if nothing at all, with regards to the Omaha Bank Hoard, all I can tell you is that it came to light in 2005, perhaps someone else on the forum could shine some more light on this for us?

[Tim B]

Hi guys,

Well, I think your question on silver content has been answered, so I will try and address the "Omaha Bank Hoard" issues a bit.

These were coins that were stuffed away for many years, probably in bank rolls and never "certified" or slabbed as you see an example in my post above. Are they more valuable than say other graded coins of the same condition and year; No! When buying coins, especially graded or investment quality coins (MS-65 or higher), buy the coin and not the holder or the story. You'll see holders marked in a variety of ways theses days (I/E: Binion Collection or S.S. Minnow ) and they are really nothing more than an indication of where the coins came out of. Some view it strictly as a marketing tool while others do like to have a piece that might have come out of say- a shipwreck (which command a nice premium btw!!).

The quality or condition is what will hold the investment, nothing else, unless you get into toned coins, then it all depends on who has to have it and the colors/patterns.

The issue with the Omaha Bank Hoard is two-fold. First, collectors in just about anything are always looking for the best pieces to aquire for their collections and hopefully the collection value increases with age. Some seem to be more concerned with the "investment potential" than other aspects of collecting pieces of history, but that's another thread! But as collectors we always hope to find that next batch of undiscovered treasure for ourselves and get rich by selling off some of it at current market value; the rub comes when those items actually hit the street and in some aspects, drop the value of the same items already in other collections. Kind of like supply & demand; if there are more items available, then the price cannot go or stay high and must come down. No one that owns "stock" wants that!

So, in the case of the Omaha Bank Hoard suddenly hitting the grading community, those that had coins that were affected, in essence lost some value in their collections; nothing to worry about for the common collector that might have a few hundred or thousand tied up, but IF you had large amounts of money invested in these coins and the same years/types all of a sudden popped up you can see the problem. That is why a lot of people are complaining that grading companies graded all these coins, some feel the grades were not as "consistent" as well, but it may be sour grapes by those heavily invested already. That's why I say; buy the coin and not the other stuff.

The other side is of course it places more pristine quality coins on the market and allows others that might not have been able to get one earlier, a chance at acquiring one now and maybe at lower prices. I collect coins that are normally slabbed MS-64 or higher because the 64 grade is the grade just under the "investment quality" label and the prices jump substantially at the 65 grade. You can sometimes get a coin graded years ago that might grade higher now as the standards have apparently lowered somewhat over the years. I have a few like that in Morgan silver dollars. With this coin, it was my birth year, had full bell lines (FBL) and was a particularly nice strike IMO; the "Omaha Bank Hoard" logo was just an interesting side note that added it for me. Who knows, they might become more valuable down the road for it!!

Keep in mind one thing when collecting. There are rare items, scarce items, and fairly common items out there in just about anything. True rare items (Col. Klink's monocule) will always be rare. What turns a scarce item into a common item is finding a "hoard" stuffed away somewhere. There is always going to be a hoard somewhere; it might be cased Mayer EK's, Deschler KVK's or coins buried in someones house, backyard or safety deposit box; it's just a matter of when it gets discovered.

Hope that helps a bit?

Tim

...and now for your viewing pleasure.

Edited July 14, 2009 by Tim B

[bigjarofwasps]

Found this which might be of interest.............

"Silver"

Kennedy Proof Half dollars

Starting in 1992 the US mint began producing a limited mintage "silver" proof set. These silver proof sets were fairly expensive (compared to regular proof sets) resulting in smaller sales and lower mintages. (Often resulting in small mintings compared to regular proof sets.) Each of these silver John F. Kennedy Halves is made of 90% pure silver (just like the old U.S. silver coins). They have an "S" mintmark. "S" mint marks indicate the coin was minted at the U.S. government mint in San Francisco California. The S mint coins were not produced for regular circulation. (Only the P and D mint marks were produced for regular circulation.)

[Tim B]

Yes, but I guess it comes down really to what "you're" into. For me, it varies, but the majority of coins I like to collect these days are Morgan silver dollars. They have great eye appeal, are relatively old, quite a large coin (bigger is better! ) and they have a lot of variety within the series. SOME are still relatively cheap, though some are not by any means.

The common coins today just don't make it for me, though I did collect the full set of state quarters and still get the annual Walking Liberty Dollar. Overall though, the quality in design is just not what it used to be; same can be said on military awards honestly.

Of course, these are nice... :rolleyes: