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50 Cents 'Fractional Currency' - 3rd series
| Issuer | United States Treasury |
|---|---|
| Year | 1864-1869 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | 50 Cents (0.50 USD) |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Designer(s) | Log in to see details |
| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Central intaglio vignette of Lady Justice seated, holding scales aloft in her right hand and a sword in her left, with an eagle-emblazoned shield at her side. The denomination 'FIFTY CENTS' appears in large orange surprint letters flanking the central figure, with 'FIFTY' repeated vertically in guilloche panels at both left and right margins. The foot of the note carries the legend 'FRACTIONAL CURRENCY' in bold letterpress, with signature lines for the Register and Treasurer below the central vignette. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | Plain reverse with the denomination '50' printed at each corner and in large figures at left and right. The central text panel contains the redemption and receivability clause in letterpress, surrounded by simple decorative borders. |
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| Comments |
The Third Issue Fractional Currency emerged from one of the stranger episodes in American monetary history: a wartime coin shortage so acute that the public was using postage stamps as small change. Congress formalized the practice briefly, then handed production to the newly established Bureau of Engraving and Printing — its earliest major contract, and one that shaped the BEP's institutional development for decades.
Two distinct 50-cent types account for the Pick split: one carries a perforated edge, the other does not. The perforation was abandoned mid-series after it proved both expensive and fragile in circulation. Surcharge varieties and fiber paper experiments complicate the picture further, making this one of the more technically involved series in U.S. small-denomination paper.