Small Eagle

The Small Eagle series of half eagles ended early in 1798. Scot's Heraldic Eagle design for the reverse - adapted from the Great Seal of the United States - appeared on the later issues of that year, and continued through 1807.

Draped Bust/Small Eagle Dimes 1796-1797
Although the dime is an essential part of the decimal coinage system, it was one of the last coins issued by the United States Mint when operations first began.

Draped Bust/Small Eagle Half Dollars
Draped Bust/Heraldic Eagle Half Dollars
Capped Bust Lettered Edge Half Dollars
Seated Liberty Half Dollar
Barber Half Dollar
Walking Liberty Half Dollar
Franklin Half Dollars
Flowing Hair Silver Dollars ...

Small Eagle: the scrawny eagle design used on U.S. gold and silver coins struck from 1794 to 1798.
small letters: some coins and varieties may have Small Letters, Medium Letters, or Large Letters.

Small Eagle The plain eagle on a perch first used on the 1794 half dime and half dollar, although the 1795 half eagle is the first coin to use the term to denote a type coin.

Small Eagle
Referring to the coin design with the plain eagle on a perch, first used on the 1794 half dime and half dollar.
Small letters ...

Small Eagle Reverse
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712 1795 Breen-6412, B-1B. Rarity-4. Small Eagle. AU-53 (PCGS). Light greenish yellow gold with very slightly reflective fields and considerable retained lustre.

Draped Bust/small eagle half dollars had been struck in minuscule quantities, with a total two-year mintage of fewer than 4,000 pieces. By contrast, more than 1.

Draped Bust, Small Eagle 1796-1797
Draped Bust, Heraldic Eagle 1801-1807
Capped Bust Half Dollar 1807-1839
Capped Bust (Lettered Edge) 1807-1836
Capped Bust (Reeded Edge) 1836-1839 ...

Draped Bust, Small Eagle 1796 Draped Bust, Heraldic Eagle 1804-1807 Capped Bust (Large) 1815-1828 Capped Bust (Small) 1831-1838 Seated Liberty (various subtypes) 1838-1891 Barber 1892-1916 Standing Liberty (Type 1) 1916-1917 Standing Liberty (Type 2) ...

Draped Bust Small Eagle Half Dollar, 1796-1797
The Draped Bust half dollar was introduced after only two years of production of the previous design.

The Draped Bust, Small Eagle design also proved to be a two-year type design. The Small Eagle reverse was continued in 1797, then no half dime denomination coins were struck again until 1800.

Draped Bust Type, Small Eagle Reverse
1797 SILVER DOLLAR, DRAPED BUST TYPE, SMALL EAGLE, total of 7,776 minted, the smallest mintage of any year from 1795 to 1803.

The obverse of the Small Eagle variety was similar except that it did not include the date and there was a stop (or period) after "WASHINGTON ." The reverse depicted a smaller American eagle with raised wings.

A small eagle at center bottom appears, when held inverted, to be the head of a floppy eared jackass. Juice In an auction, the Juice is the buyer's commission rate--normally 10%. "What did you have to pay?" "Eleven grand plus the juice.

One of the most famous of all American coin design types is the 1796-1797 Draped Bust half dollar design with Small Eagle reverse.

Scot's design featured a cruder and less regal bird than that on the Great Seal, and to many, was artistically inferior to the small eagle on earlier U.S. coins.

The first, is the Small Eagle reverse, struck 1796 and 1797. Both dates are quite scarce, with the 1796 having a mintage of 22,135 and the 1797 at only slightly more with 25,261.

The reverse of the coin features the Liberty Bell and a small eagle. The small eagle is in respect to Franklin’s opposition to the eagle as the symbol of America.

Cross with globular ends, annulet in one quadrant, legends/Small eagle facing, legends, Roberts 4782. Near centered, few weak spots as usual, light tone, eagle clear, Very Fine....$85 Photo
(These are often found in pilgrim and crusader hoards.

A small eagle to the right of the bell was necessitated by law, Franklin himself had opposed the selection of the eagle as the US national symbol, preferring the turkey as a "more noble bird".

Flowing Hair Half Dime, 1794-1795
Draped Bust Half Dime (Small Eagle Reverse), 1796-1797
Draped Bust Half Dime (Heraldic Eagle Reverse), 1800-1805
Capped Bust Half Dime, 1829-1837
Seated Liberty Half Dime (various subtypes), 1837-1873 ...

Breen was correct in that there are only two "types" (or what I prefer to call "varieties") and as he notes, the variations primarily affect the small eagle to the right of the Liberty Bell.

Jackass Note $10 United States Note issued from 1869-1928. A small eagle at center bottom appears, when held inverted, to be the head of a floppy eared jackass.

KOMMODW KAI CEB VIW, bare head left resting on small eagle / GEPMANIK CAPMAT, Tyche of Antioch, turreted & veiled, seated right on rocks, holding two wheat ears, river god Orontes swimming right at her feet, above her head ram right, looking back.

Others complained that the small eagle looked like a pigeon. Whether this led to the design change is not well documented as there were also stacking issues with the Type I coins.

Tags: 1804 eagle, date by date analysis, early gold, heraldic eagle ten dollar gold, Small Eagle ...

One of the most interesting (and rare) coins in that sale was a 1795 Small Eagle bust dollar, described simply as Uncirculated. It was a gem coin with superb surfaces, lustre and strike. Unfortunately, the toning was positively hideous.

Lady Liberty started out with flowing hair, and then became a draped bust, then a capped bust. The eagle also underwent several makeovers. It began as a small eagle that many thought looked too much like a pigeon.

Thunderbolt; usually small eagle in field (as on coins of Alexander of Epirus).
Æ 1.0-.65
Id.

See also: Eagle, Coin, Bust, Silver, Half