PCGS The Standard for the Rare Coin Industry

Dr. and Mrs. Peter K. Shireman Collection

About this set: 

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Now the current top-rated mint state Barber Halves in the PCGS registry! What does it take to do this? Passion. Patience. Persistance. Focus. Luck. Decades of searching, hunting and holding. And a GREAT DEALER. All are needed to complete this set successfully at the gem level; our set would not be the high-end PQ set it is today without my favorite coin dealer, Harry Laibstain, who has helped us considerably along the way. Thanks so much Harry! Your comraderie, great eye for coins, knowledge of numismatics, and market sensibility have aided us greatly. You have helped us find the right coins.

It is great fun and challenging to build sets like this! We plan to hold and refine our set for the long-term; such advice we have received directly from David Hall, and it makes great sense. The set was sent in for Secure Plus May, 2011 and a number of coins upgraded to Plus, a real tribute to the fine numismatic eye of Harry Laibstain. We were initially hesitant to have the set re-graded for secure plus, but we are glad we did. The immense satisfaction and education we have achieved with building this set is unmatched. We have purchased and researched old auction catalogs, and bought any references to Barber Halves that we could find. The Registry Set concept developed by PCGS is a very important contribution to numismatics and has provided a great means of networking among collectors and dealers. We were able to connect with multiple other collectors and help each other along the way, and the process continues.

Our journey to build this set began in 1994 with an 1892 in MS 64, and was completed with all 73 regular issue coins in mint state in 2002; the last "hole" to fill was the 1911-S. Upon initial completion of the set the gpa was 63.69, but this has been improved greatly in the interim, particularly since adding numerous coins from the outstanding collection of Mr John Hugon. This now includes the highest graded coin in our set, the 1906-S in MS 68! The sale of the sets of Dale Friend and Steve Duckor have provided us with additional great coins. We also obtained an 1892-O micro O, not part of this set, but it is listed in the set with major varieties.

The earliest collectors of the Barber Half series typically collected proof examples for the P-mints, but a trend over the past 50 years or so is to obtain the entire set in mint state and collect the proof examples separately. Thus, collections (sets) put together by Clapp, Emery-Nichols, and Norweb were often obtained yearly directly from the mint and did not include business strike P-mint coins (they collected proof examples of these). Eliasberg bought most of his Barber coins directly from the sale of the Clapp estate, continuing that set mostly intact. A large percentage of the top available coins in the Barber Half Dollar series can be traced to coins put away by these few early collectors. We are not aware of that many collectors putting together complete mint state sets from the 1940's-1950's. Noteworthy collections of Barber Halves in the latter half of the 20th Century into current times included: James Stack (not complete but some exceptionally nice coins), Pryor, Queller, Price, Hugon, Friend, and Duckor.

There are many tough coins in this set in mint state. Gems for most of the dates are very difficult to find. Not all certified gems have the eye appeal we look for. The set is currently being upgraded slowly with a target of MS 65-67. The last regular issue to be obtained in MS 64 or above was the 1900. The last coin needed to attain all MS 65 or better coins was the seemingly common 1908-D; this coin was obtained in October, 2006. Finding a nice gem of this issue was surprising difficult. Specimens are procured from major collections or sales, when possible. We love chasing and finding pedigrees for our coins. The Owner's Comments section of our registry lists the pedigrees, where known, and speculates when there is good reason to think the coin has a specific pedigree. Coins range from original and toned to brilliant white coins.

The other serious Barber collectors we have met are also a great addition to the hobby and the set building. Some collect the circulated coins that we love as well. Meeting Dr. Steve Duckor and Dale Friend, fellow mint state Barber Half Dollar registry set builders, has been a real highlight of our collecting experience. The Barber Half display at the February, 2005 Long Beach show was a great opportunity to see three complete gem sets. Attending the auctions of the sets of Steve Duckor and Dale Friend was great fun.

Regarding the population reports of Barber Halves in mint state, most of the numbers are very accurate for coins in the MS 65 and above grades, as so few coins exist and most can be traced with relative ease. With so few coins in the top grade, and many of these listed in registry sets, most can be individually accounted for. There are a few falsely elevated population numbers, but not many in the gem and above grades. This knowledge is helped a great deal by our long-term study of the series, but also aided greatly by the fabulous Coin Facts site that PCGS has developed. We strongly applaud PCGS for this great idea and labor of love that is already a great work, and will only improve with time.

The Barber Half Dollar was a working person's coin, and the vast majority were used widely in commerce. If one looks at the surviving examples, a large percentage of remaining specimens, likely 90% or more, are in worn condition and would grade good or about good; many are damaged, pitted, have holes, or other problems. The number of surviving mint state coins is a small percentage of the coins struck as most were used in daily business and saw circulation, even into the 1950's and 1960's. Saving a fifty cent piece in the late 1890's and early 1900's was a lot of money for most Americans and consequently, not very many were saved in uncirculated condition. The half dollars produced following the Barber series, the Walking Liberty type, were more often saved, and were made until 1947 with many more collectors available at the end of that time-frame. Thus, mint state Barber Halves remain uncommon and a link to the past, and span a time when motor vehicles were first being developed, as well as other great strides in the industrial revolution.