1857-O Half Dollars Liberty Seated NGC Uncertified Shipwreck Effect SS REPUBLIC

1857-O Liberty Seated Half Dollar - NGC Shipwreck Effect - SS Republic

Offered here is an authentic 1857-O Liberty Seated Half Dollar, struck at the New Orleans Mint and encapsulated by NGC with the SS Republic Shipwreck Effect designation.

The 1857-O Seated Liberty half dollar is a No Motto issue from the long-running Liberty Seated series. It was recovered from the wreck of the S.S. Republic, a sidewheel steamship that sank in a hurricane off the Georgia coast on October 25, 1865, while bound from New York to New Orleans with a cargo of specie.

The coin is certified in an NGC SS Republic holder with the Shipwreck Effect designation rather than a numeric Sheldon grade. That designation recognizes saltwater exposure from more than a century on the ocean floor and is the standard NGC attribution for recovered Republic silver. Surface texture, corrosion, and remaining detail vary by piece and should be judged from the photographs and the NGC label.

The 1857-O half dollar had a mintage of 818,000 coins. New Orleans examples of this date are collectible in their own right and are additionally desirable when documented to the Republic wreck.

The obverse features Christian Gobrecht’s Seated Liberty design, with Liberty seated on a rock, holding a Liberty cap on a pole and a shield inscribed LIBERTY. Thirteen stars surround the figure, and the date 1857 appears below.

The reverse features Gobrecht’s heraldic eagle with a shield on its breast, an olive branch and arrows in its talons, and the inscriptions UNITED STATES OF AMERICA and HALF DOL. The distinctive “O” mintmark appears below the eagle.

The coin was struck at the New Orleans Mint and bears the distinctive “O” mintmark.

Struck in 90% silver and 10% copper, the coin has a standard weight of 12.44 grams and a reeded edge.

NGC has encapsulated this example as an uncertified Shipwreck Effect recovery from the S.S. Republic. The holder documents the wreck provenance; it does not assign a numeric grade because saltwater exposure prevents a conventional surface assessment.

Coin Details

Year: 1857 Mint: New Orleans Mintmark: O Denomination: Fifty Cents Series: Liberty Seated Half Dollar Issue Type: Circulation Strike Special Variety: SS Republic Shipwreck Recovery Commemorative Theme: S.S. Republic Shipwreck, sunk 1865 Composition: 90% Silver, 10% Copper Silver Weight: 0.3600 Troy Ounce Mintage: 818,000 Weight: 12.44 Grams Diameter: 30.60 mm Edge: Reeded Obverse Designer: Christian Gobrecht Reverse Designer: Christian Gobrecht Certification: NGC Grade: Uncertified / Shipwreck Effect Designation: SS Republic

The combination of 1857-O New Orleans production, No Motto Seated Liberty type, documented S.S. Republic shipwreck provenance, and NGC Shipwreck Effect encapsulation makes this coin a particularly desirable addition to a Seated Liberty, New Orleans, shipwreck, or specialized 19th-century U.S. coin collection.

Please review all photographs and the NGC certification label carefully for the exact appearance, attribution, designation, wreck provenance, and condition of the coin offered.