View source for 1792 half disme

{{Short description|American silver coin}}
[[File:1792 Half Disme pattern (Judd-7).jpg|thumb|right|Obverse and reverse of the half disme ]]
The '''1792 half disme''' ({{IPAc-en|'|d|i:|m}} {{respell|DEEM}})<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.coinauctionshelp.com/Half_Disme_First_U.S._Coin_Minted.html#.XjBeumhKiHs|title=1792 Half Disme (Deem) First Coin US Coin Image, Facts|website=www.coinauctionshelp.com|access-date=2020-01-28}}</ref> is an American [[silver]] coin with a face value of five [[Cent (currency)|cents]] ({{frac|20}} [[U.S. dollar]]) which was minted in 1792. Although it is subject to debate as to whether this was intended to be circulating coinage or instead an experimental issue, [[President of the United States|President]] [[George Washington]] referred to it as "a small beginning" and many of the coins eventually were released into circulation.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://coinauctionshelp.com/Half_Disme_First_U.S._Coin_Minted.html|title=1792 Half Disme (Deem) First Coin US Coin Image, Facts|website=coinauctionshelp.com}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.coin-collecting-guide-for-beginners.com/half-dimes.html |title=Half Dimes| accessdate= 31 May 2011 <!--Added by DASHBot-->}}</ref> It is widely (although not universally) considered the first United States coinage struck under authority of the [[Coinage Act of 1792]].<ref name="coins.heritageauctions.com">{{cite web|url=http://coins.heritageauctions.com/common/view_item.php?Sale_No=404&Lot_No=1860|title=1792 Half Disme SP67 PCGS, sold for $1,322,500|date=2006-04-26| accessdate= 21 August 2006 <!--Added by DASHBot-->| archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20060905092843/http://coins.heritageauctions.com/common/view_item.php?Sale_No=404&Lot_No=1860| archivedate= 5 September 2006 <!--Added by DASHBot-->}}</ref>
==Description==
The coin is {{Cvt|16.5|mm}} in diameter. The obverse depicts the head of [[Liberty (personification)|Liberty]] and the inscription {{small|LIB. PAR. OF SCIENCE & INDUSTRY}}, "[[Liberty]], parent of [[Science]] and [[Industry (economics)|Industry]]."<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.amrevmuseum.org/read-the-revolution/forged-in-philadelphia|title=Forged in Philadelphia - Museum of the American Revolution}}</ref> The reverse shows {{small|UNI. STATES OF AMERICA}} and {{small|HALF DISME}} along with an eagle and a star.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://coinauctionshelp.com/Half_Disme_First_U.S._Coin_Minted.html?amp=1|title=1792 Half Disme (Deem) First Coin US Coin Image, Facts|website=coinauctionshelp.com}}</ref>

==Origins==
When speaking to the [[United States House of Representatives|House of Representatives]] in November 1792, President Washington mentioned the "want of small coins in circulation" and stated that he had begun work on establishing a [[U.S. Mint]] and that some half dismes had been produced already. At this point, most of the personnel had been hired, but the Mint's buildings and machinery were not yet ready. As a result, the half dismes, which had been struck in or around July 1792, were produced using the private facilities of local craftsman John Harper, although under the auspices of official Mint personnel. In his personal log book, [[United States Secretary of State|Secretary of State]] [[Thomas Jefferson]] recorded the receipt of 1,500 specimens on July 13.

Because of President Washington's connection with these early coins, [[numismatic]] folklore holds that the portrait on the obverse is that of [[First Lady of the United States|First Lady]] [[Martha Washington]] and that some of the coins were struck using melted-down silverware from the Washington household.<ref name=Greatest>
 {{cite book
 |author1=Garrett, J.  |author2=Guth, R.
 | title = 100 Greatest U.S. Coins
 | year = 2003
 | publisher = H.E. Harris & Co
 | location = Atlanta, GA  
 | isbn = 0-7948-1665-7
 | page = 35
 }}
</ref> However, there is no solid evidence for either of these assertions.<ref name=Stacks>
{{cite web
| url = http://www.stacks.com/lotdetail.aspx?lrid=AN00005592&fs=true
| title = 1792 half disme. Judd-7, Pollock-7. Rarity-4
| year = 2004
| work = Stack's: Rare Coins for Sale: Numismatic Auctions
| publisher = Stack's, LLC
| quote = The legend part of the story has it that George Washington personally donated tableware to be melted for the silver, and in return received these pieces to give as gifts to VIPs. Another bit of folklore is that the image is of Martha Washington, which does not square at all with reality (for example, a contemporary portrait of Martha Washington, an image of which is in our research file, looks nothing at all like the portrait on the half disme).
| accessdate= 22 April 2007 <!--Added by DASHBot-->| archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20070314180023/http://www.stacks.com/lotdetail.aspx?lrid=AN00005592&fs=true| archivedate= 14 March 2007 <!--Added by DASHBot-->}}
</ref> To the contrary, evidence uncovered from Thomas Jefferson's memorandum book shows that he provided "75 (Mexican) Silver Dollars" and received the first 1,500 half dismes. He then spent those coins on his trip home to Monticello.<ref>{{Cite web|last3=Augsburger|first1=Pete |last1=Smith |first2=Joel J. |last2=Orosz |first3= Leonard|title=A More Accurate History of the 1792 Half Disme|url=https://blog.money.org/coin-collecting/history-of-the-1792-disme|access-date=2021-09-04|website=blog.money.org|date=14 July 2020 |language=en}}</ref>

==Production, rarity, and value==
Although the exact number is not known, it is believed that between 2,000 and 3,500 specimens were produced. Approximately 10% of these survive today; one expert estimated between 250 and 400 half dismes exist, and most appear to have been used in circulation for some time. An about{{clarify|date=August 2024}} uncirculated (AU55 on the [[Sheldon coin grading scale]]) 1792 half disme was auctioned for $138,000 on July 24, 2004.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.anrcoins.com/lotdetail.aspx?lrid=AN00005592|title=American Numismatic Rarities, the Oliver Jung Collection, July 24, 2004|date=2004-07-24| accessdate= 21 August 2006 <!--Added by DASHBot-->}}</ref>  A 1792 half disme [[Coin grading|graded]] MS65 was valued in 2018 on the American reality television series ''[[Pawn Stars]]'' at $500,000–600,000.<ref>{{cite web |date=2018 |title=Pawn Stars |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yTKbcAKbQtU&list=PLZ8FA96YO7hdBGCbGQLlLC55lUSVFBpNj&index=14 |access-date=10 February 2022 |website=Pawn Stars - Youtube}}</ref> A specimen strike from the Starr collection, [[Coin grading|graded]] MS67 by [[Professional Coin Grading Service|PCGS]], sold for $1,322,500 on April 26, 2006.<ref name="coins.heritageauctions.com"/> The highest numerically graded piece, an [[Numismatic Guaranty Corporation|NGC]] MS68, sold for $1,500,000 by private treaty transaction in 2007.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://news.coinupdate.com/finest-known-half-disme-0651/ |title=Finest Known 1792 Half Disme To Be Displayed}}</ref>

Although nearly all 1792 half dismes were produced in a [[List of alloys#Alloys of silver|silver alloy]], a unique pattern piece in [[copper]] is also known.<ref name=Greatest />

==See also==
{{Portal|Money|Numismatics|United States}}
*[[Half dime]]
*[[Nickel (United States coin)]]
*[[Dime (United States coin)]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
*[http://www.coincommunity.com/coin_histories/half_disme_1792.asp 1792 Half Disme Complete History]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20060209103928/http://www.coinresource.com/guide/photograde/pg_05cBirchHalfDisme.htm CoinResource.com - Birch Half Disme 1792]
{{United States circulating coinage}}{{Obsolete U.S. currency and coinage}}
{{Coinage (United States coin)}}
{{Money and central banking within the contemporary United States (pre–1913)}}

[[Category:Five-cent coins of the United States]]