1853 $5 Liberty Head, Half Eagle...? 0

[JDW2]

Hello!

A new collector recently acquired - Coin (NGC): 1853 $5 Liberty Head, Half Eagle (No motto) AU 55.  What free resources are available to me, to conduct research?

[Coinbuf]

Welcome to the forum, just what research is it that you wish to conduct?   The red book has some very basic info, NGC explorer has some background information on this coin, a google search will give you some wiki pages on it as well, and PCGS coinfacts.

NGC explorer

Coinfacts

There are several books written about this and other gold coins by Q David Bowers, its possible that your local public library may have some that you can check out.

[Sandon]

On 5/25/2023 at 3:41 PM, JDW2 said:

What free resources are available to me, to conduct research?

    Welcome to the NGC chat board.   The links that @Coinbuf has provided to the NGC Coin Explorer and PCGS Coinfacts will provide you with a good bit of legitimate information about this and other types and issues of U.S. coins. The NGC and PCGS websites also have detailed price guides, population reports, and auction records.  The catalog archives of some of the major numismatic auction houses such as Heritage (ha.com) and Stacks Bowers (stacksbowers.com) sometimes have detailed comments about specific issues of coins with the listings of rare or high-grade pieces.

   We have an old expression, "Buy the book before the coin." Nowadays you can conduct some research for free online, but some books and print and/or online subscriptions are essential. Based on current retail price guides, you likely paid around $1,000 for your 1853 half eagle graded AU 55. If you intend to buy other coins at this price level, wouldn't it make sense to spend a few hundred dollars on such resources?  The following topic identifies some of them indicates and how you may obtain them: