We usually take the opportunity to share a five-, six-, or even seven-figure rarity for the PCGS Coin of the Week. But this time, we thought we would profile a really nice, affordable coin that was recently sold by Heritage Auctions. This week’s piece is none other than a 1942 Walking Liberty half dollar graded by Professional Coin Grading Service as an MS65. It was pieces like this one that drove the coin market to all-time highs in the late 1980s, when sight-unseen numismatic trading really took off.
For its own part, this 1942 Walking Liberty half dollar is a stellar piece. In its mid-level Mint State grade of MS65, it’s a solid Gem-quality coin worthy of a place in any collection of classic United States coinage. This featured specimen also boasts some gorgeous toning in the upper-righthand corner of the obverse, where dusty turquoise, canary, and russet colors radiate outward in a semi-circular fashion from behind Miss Liberty’s head, arm, and bouquet of olive branches.
Otherwise, this piece boasts blast-white surfaces and a frosty finish, as seen in virtually full view across the lustrous reverse of this example. This coin took $118.80 in March 2021 and lured more than a dozen bids. It just goes to show that, even in a world where numismatic record books have tracked eight-figure sales prices, bread-and-butter beauties like this PCGS MS65 1942 Walking Liberty Half Dollar still endear collectors.
*Images are courtesy of Heritage Auctions, www.HA.com.
