The 1843 half eagle is a common issue in all circulated grades and it is available, from time to time, in the lower Uncirculated grades. It becomes scarce in properly graded MS62 and, like all No Motto half eagles, it is quite rare in MS63 and above. The present example is about as nice as an MS62 No Motto half eagle can be and, for what it’s worth, I tried it a number of times at both services in an attempt to get it into an MS63 holder. It is totally original with superb deep orange-gold and greenish hues on the obverse; the reverse tends a bit more towards reddish-orange and deep gold. There are just a few tiny old marks in the left obverse field while the reverse is clean and choice. It is remarkable to me that a collector can still purchase a superb quality mid-19th century U.S. gold coin for less than $4,000.