BG- 310, 1856 California Gold Rush Circulating Fractional Gold 50C, Liberty Octagonal PCGS MS61 R6+ Ex. Jay Roe

There have been 18 of this issue graded by PCGS. There are four in MS61, with nine finer. Obverse presents the left-facing Coroneted Liberty head inspired by the Federal coin issues of the 1850s, surrounded by thirteen stars, upon an octagonal flan. The reverse of this desired issue offers a wreath with berries neatly tied at the bottom with a ribbon. Four pairs of berries are found on the left branch of the wreath. Centered within the wreath is the date 1856. Surrounding the wreath is HALF DOL. CALIFORNIA GOLD. Below the wreath is the mintmark 'N.' for French jeweler Antoine Louis Nouvizillet of San Francisco.

Satirical magazine illustration of an "Independent Gold Hunter on His Way to California," circa 1850. Photo: Wikipedia.

Robert H. Lande, specialist on California Fractional Gold, writes that these Period 1 coins (1852-1856) are "plain, sparse, minimalist, unadorned, and basic." There was a serious effort on the part of the jewelers to mimic the federal government's then current $1 gold coin. To that end, over 99 percent of the Period 1 California Fractional Gold coins feature the iconic Liberty head motif. Lande writes, "...the resemblance between the period's gold U.S. $1.00 pieces and many of the California gold...pieces is uncanny..." These diminutive gold coins fit the bill of meeting the shortage of small change. Aesthetics are not a concern when producing emergency coinage. Why did such coins carry similar designs? Lande writes, "Once some had been accepted as money, it would have been advantageous for minters to strike pieces that were similar to the previously issued and accepted pieces."