Coins

Small Eagle On Franklin Half Dollar

John R. Sinnock designed the Franklin half dollar, but Gilroy Roberts is responsible for placing the small eagle just to the right of the Liberty Bell on the reverse.

U.S. coinage law requires an eagle be depicted on all silver coins larger than our dime.

Franklin half dollars are easy to collect because just 35 coins comprise the entire series (includes all date-and-mintmark combinations).

Many Franklin half dollars have mintages of less than 10 million. Yet, in lower circulated grades, nearly the entire series can be had for a slight markup over bullion value.

Some Franklin Half Dollars Not Easy To Find

A few Franklin half dollars are considered to be "scarce," at least as compared to other Franklin half dates in the series:

• 1948 3,006,814 struck ($20-35 in typical uncirculated)
• 1948-D 4,028,600 struck ($20-25 in typical uncirculated)
• 1949-S 3,744,000 struck ($60-75 in typical uncirculated)
• 1953 2,796,920 struck ($25-40 in typical uncirculated)
• 1955 2,876,381 struck ($25-40 in typical uncirculated) 

In terms of mintage, those are the 5 "scarcest" Franklin half dollars. But the prices for those scarcer coins are not that high, even in uncirculated grades. Interestingly, some of the more "common" Franklin halves are more expensive than the scarce dates listed.

In fact, many Franklin half dollars are considered downright scarce in uncirculated grades. Many coin collectors saved some of the lower-mintage coins when they were first released. More common coins were not spared from circulation.

Decades later, the result is that some modern-era coins with low mintages actually cost less to obtain in uncirculated grades than some coins with higher mintages.

Franklin Half Dollar Categories

Collectors of Franklin half dollars like to categorize uncirculated Franklin half dollars into 2 large groups:

• full bell lines (FBL)
• without full bell lines 

What are full bell lines?

Look on the back of a less-worn Franklin half dollar. Do you see the horizontal lines cutting across the bottom of the Liberty Bell on the reverse of the coin?

Those are the lines collectors want to see in full.

An uncirculated Franklin half dollar which bears full, crisp, complete horizontal lines in the Liberty Bell, is worth a premium in value. Typical uncirculated pieces, on which the lines often are not fully struck, are valued less.

Some dates of Franklin half dollars with full bell lines are downright rare.

Values for full bell lines Franklin halves vary, but can range from as little as $10-25 over prices for a typical uncirculated piece to hundreds of dollars more -- especially if the piece is a high-grade uncirculated specimen.

Values of Franklin Half Dollar Collections

As of this writing, less than $300 can complete a collection of lower circulated grade Franklin half dollars. But one can spend between $1,000-1,200 for a collection of typical uncirculated Franklin half dollars.

Prices go far higher than that if each Franklin half dollar in the collection is a high-grade uncirculated specimen with few abrasions, detractions, or other imperfections.

The Franklin half dollar series was struck for a short 16 years.

The assassination of President John F. Kennedy on November 22, 1963 set in motion rapid approval of a coin honoring the slain leader. Kennedy half dollars were first struck in 1964.

Check Out These Books About Franklin Half Dollars:

The Complete Guide to Franklin Half Dollars by Rick Tomaska

The Official U.S. Mint Franklin Half Dollars Coin Album: 1948-1963 by Whitman Publishing