My mother has a few dozen Kennedy half dollars and I'm sure most of them have more than a 50c value. The majority date from the early 70's to the early 80's. I've tried doing some research, but haven't learned much. One site I found talked about the coins with a D and some with a P, next to them. What do those letters mean? Is there any way to figure out the value without taking them to someone? Thanks much
P and D are mint marks which indicate which mint the coins were minted at. P stands for the Philadelphia mint and D represents the Denver mint. You should pick up a current copy of the Redbook (Guidbook of United States Coins) at your local bookstore or coin shop. It will be a big help in determining the value of any US coins. By the way, welcome to CT!
Mint Marks The letters are Mint Marks. They tell where they were minted and some are worth more than others. If you do a search on the internet (which you obviously have) and read up on "Mint Marks" you will see there are more than just two. But I suggest you start off with what you do NOT do to them.....like touch them if they are bright and shiny, except with clean gloves, by the edge. If not damaged some will be worth more than others. Think of them as sacred, not necessarily "Worth a lot of money". Isn't that why she kept them in the 1st place?
From your description, they don't sound like they will be worth more than 50 cents (unless in uncirculated condition). Kennedy halves from 1964 are 90% silver, from 65 through 1970 are 40% silver, after that, there are not P or D silver halves. You may want to look for a 1987 which has a low mintage, but other than that, they are probably just worth 50 cents. If you think they are uncircluated, post a pic of them.... AND, welcome to the forum!
Welcome to CT. There are alot to figure out and it all can't be typed here in a post. But if you do some search's and read up you'll find plenty. The obvious though is the silver in some of those like the 1964's. Good luck with the hunt.
According to this site http://sammler.com/coins/kennedy_half_dollar.htm#1977 it appears even the newer ones have an added value. Thanks, guys.
Those prices are for EXTREMELY high grade coins. Like, close to perfect. If your coins are from circulation, they will not come close to that value. IMO, modern, high-grade coinage is a scam. To get a coin worth $8.50 graded MS 65 would cost you more than the price of the graded coin :rolling: If, under magnification, your Kennedy looks like this: http://www.pcgs.com/Photograde/#/Kennedy/Grades It might be worth keeping. Just my opinion. Joe
