The Walking Liberty half dollar series began in 1916 and ended in 1947. Designed by Adolph A. Weinman, also known for designing the "Mercury" dime, the Walking LIberty half dollar is acclaimed by Numismatic Experts and casual collectors as one of the most beautiful silver coin produced by the U.S. Mint.

The obverse of the coin is dramatic and inspiring. Liberty is depicted striding towards a rising sun, cloaked in the American flag, right arm extended, left arm cradling branches of laurel and oak. Arrayed around the edge is the word "LIBERTY", the motto "IN GOD WE TRUST" is to the right of Miss Liberty. On the reverse is the Eagle, wings spread, standing on a rocky outcropping with a pine tree springing from the edge. The words "UNITED STATES OF AMERICA" ring the edge above the Eagle and below is the denomination "HALF DOLLAR." The motto "E PLURIBUS UNUM", meaning "Out of Many, One", is to the left of the Eagle's breast.

Physically, the coin is 30.6 mm in diameter, weighs 12.50 grams and is made of .900 pure silver. It carries .3617 troy ounces of silver, about 1/3rd of a troy ounce. Three Walking Liberty halves contain just over 1 troy ounce of silver.

Adolph Weinman, born in Germany, came to the U.S. at age 10. He trained with the well known sculptor Augustus Saint-Gaudens where he worked on the famous Saint-Gaudens $20 Double Eagle gold coin. After Saint-Gaudens death Weinman continued and by 1915 was well known as one of America's greatest sculptors.

Issued only sporadically during the 1920s and early 1930s the Walking Liberty saw more than 485 million half dollars minted from 1916 through 1947. So these are not, for the most part, rare coins. Some issues, particularly 1921, 1938-D, 1941-S, 1916, 1916-S and 1917-D are scarce in higher mint state grades and command higher prices. In most other years and mint marks the coins are relatively reasonable even up to MS65 and sometimes higher. Many collectors are able to complete full sets of the 65 date and mint mark combinations necessary for a complete set. Others assemble short sets of the years 1941 through 1947.

What particularly appeals to most collectors that I've talked with is that the Walking Liberty series is a large coin with high silver content that carries an acclaimed design known for its beauty and grace. And yet it doesn't cost an arm and a leg to put together a nice collection in About Uncirculated or even Brilliant Uncirculated condition.

The proof of the lasting appeal of Weinman's Walking Liberty is that the design was selected to appear as the obverse on the $1 Silver Eagle coin issued since 1986. Since its release in 1986 there have been many new collectors become curious about the original design, became enamored of the Walking Liberty half dollar and began to put together collections of this great series for their own.

The Walking Liberty half dollar, over a period of 30 years, served the U.S. well as part of its everyday coinage. It saw the country though 2 world wars, a devastating world wide recession, the beginning of the cold war and the first of the baby boomer generation. During the years of its production 50 cents had a large amount of buying power. Today the Walking Liberty series of silver half dollars is widely sought by collectors around the world.