SOLD
 
Here is an 1843-O Liberty Half Eagle.  It is the 'Small Letters' variety.  There is also a 'Large Letters' variety.    The Small Letters variety is the rarer of the two types.  According to Doug Winter, it is the 3rd rarest of all O-Mint Liberty Half Eagles, from 1840-O all the way to the 1909-O Indian (n=16).  The Large Letters variety is about twice as available and ranks 12th.  Suffice to say any O-Mint Half Eagle is rare to uncommon.
 
This lovely example exhibits modest wear with silky luster when rotating under the light.  No major detractions or hits, just what is expected of a well taken care of XF gold coin that spent some time in circulation, which is why it meets the expectations of CAC.  There are 3 die states of the Small Letters Half Eagle. This is die state 1 where the obverse stars are sharply defined and there are no reverse cracks.  With the later die states, the stars weaken and stars 6-8 almost disappear,  and some of the letters on the reverse literally fade out as the die aged.  Hence, this example represents an early struck example.  
 
Doug Winter estimates that 90-100 Small Letters 1843-O Half Eagles are extant.  Despite this, only 17 have met CAC/CACG expectations.  There are 3 in XF45 including this one, 8 in AU, and 3 in MS.  Hence, any CACed example is quite hard to come by.
 
More information about this Half Eagle is in the Cool Coin Showcase #8:
 
https://www.desertmoonnm.com/post/cool-coin-showcase-8-june-9-2026
 
This coin is approved by CAC.
 
PCGS Cert. #34932358