This is a 1909-O Indian Half Eagle in AU55/CAC.  This is the key date coin for the Indian Half Eagle series.  Not only that, it is the only New Orleans gold Indian in all 4 widely collected – Quarter Eagle, Half Eagle, and Eagle series, and the contemporaneous Saint Gaudens double eagle series.  It is the only New Orleans Half Eagle minted since 1894 in the Liberty series.  It is the last New Orleans gold coin to be minted.  But wait!  There is (of course) more! This one resides in an Old Green Holder, which by itself is special, rare, and unusual for a key date coin with so many superlatives.  Now we could stop here and say no more and we hope you, dear reader, are convinced that this is a very, very, cool coin.  But………….
 
Why the 1909-O half eagle was even minted appears to still be somewhat of a mystery.  While in 1909 the other 3 mints in operation were minting buckets and buckets of Indian Half Eagles – 627K in Philly, over 3 million in the new Denver mint, and about 300K in SF, New Orleans managed to mint only 34,200.  Hence a cornucopia of half eagles flowing out of the other mints, and in comparison, just a ‘pocketful’ or two coming from New Orleans. Apparently, nearly all of them were said to be dispersed into circulation although a few are extant in MS grades.  The New Orleans mint, as we know, began minting coins in 1838 and then was closed at the onset of the Civil War in 1861.  It arose again in 1879 primarily minting silver dollars and less so everything else.  Then on April 1, 1909, the New Orleans Mint closed for good via an edict from our federal government.  Hence, there were only 3 months where coining took place at New Orleans in 1909, and there was not too much going on there – Barber dimes, quarters, and halves were minted and in all 3 the 1909-O is a better date because of limited production, no copper was minted, no silver dollars (remember the Morgan series was not coined since 1904), or any gold besides the Indian Half Eagle.  Again, the open question is why the mint employees decided to mint half eagles suddenly after a long hiatus and right before the mint closed.  Surely someone knew that the shutdown was nigh…………..
 
In either case, they created a key date Indian Half Eagle at the New Orleans mint in 1909.  Using the term Doug Winter loves, this half eagle, because of its limited production compared to others in its series, and its unique place in the history of US Mint production, has multiple levels of demand. 
 
Perusing the PCGS auction records for PCGS-CAC, in AU55 and AU58, there have been 19 auctioned over the last decade.  58’s go up to about $30K, and 55’s go down to $12K  (n=1) but mostly from $15K to $20K (n=6).  Out of that group, only 1 was in an Old Green Holder, and that one was AU55.  That coin was auctioned at Heritage in January, 2020 for $15,600 and before the big run up in numismatic gold prices during and following the pandemic.  At that time PCGS retail in AU55 was $14,000.  What this indicates is that as expected, a superior quality coin in an OGH goes for a premium over the stated price guides.  It also shows that only a very few of the CACed Indian Half Eagles are likely to be in old holders, in this date set, only 5.3%.  Hence the example we are offering here is not only traded infrequently, but OGH examples worthy of CAC only pop up about ,once in a decade.  It is likely that the siblings of the Heritage example and this offering here in OGH/Rattlers, were cracked out with owners looking for upgrades, meaning that they are very rare today.  Presently, it is at $15,750 in AU55, and $18,500 in AU55+ in the PCGS retail guide. CAC CPG is at $18,000 in AU55.  Both go up into the low $20Ks for AU58.
 
This example is pq for the AU55 grade and would likely grade 55+ in the current grading system. Very few marks are present for a gold coin that experienced limited circulation.  It is very well struck, has vibrant peach-apricot tone, and strong luster under the light.  Dare we say it, if someone was bold enough to crack it out, would it go AU58?  Please don’t do it though, residing in an OGH has far more panache than a 1 grade upgrade would in a modern holder for a key date like this.
 
In summary, this is such a very cool coin that we are excited and awed to obtain.  We probably won’t find another one soon, if ever. There will be some pain in our souls when we have to say goodbye when a new owner comes along to snag this beauty.  
 
This coin is approved by CAC.
 
PCGS Cert. #4176305