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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;Catbert, post: 418267, member: 12718&quot;]I know I&#039;m resurrecting my own thread, but I had to post some pictures of my latest acquisition and to, as Led Zepplin sang, ramble on!</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>The Franklin Half, though the design is much maligned by collectors, does have some interesting history. A Wikipedia excerpt captures some of this history:</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><span style="color: purple">&quot;The Franklin half dollar is a </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_coinage" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_coinage" rel="nofollow"><span style="color: purple">coin</span></a><span style="color: purple"> of the </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States" rel="nofollow"><span style="color: purple">United States</span></a><span style="color: purple">, minted from 1948 to 1963. The coin pictured </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benjamin_Franklin" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benjamin_Franklin" rel="nofollow"><span style="color: purple">Benjamin Franklin</span></a><span style="color: purple"> on the obverse and the </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liberty_Bell" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liberty_Bell" rel="nofollow"><span style="color: purple">Liberty Bell</span></a><span style="color: purple"> on the reverse. A small </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eagle" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eagle" rel="nofollow"><span style="color: purple">eagle</span></a><span style="color: purple"> to the right of the bell was necessitated by law; ironically, Franklin himself had opposed the selection of the eagle as the US national symbol, preferring the turkey as a &quot;more noble bird&quot;.&quot;</span></p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><span style="color: purple">&quot;..... Engraver John R. Sinnock&#039;s initials appear at Franklin&#039;s shoulder on the obverse. Sinnock&#039;s initials inadvertently reflected the tensions of the times. Sinnock had also designed the </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roosevelt_dime" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roosevelt_dime" rel="nofollow"><span style="color: purple">Roosevelt dime</span></a><span style="color: purple">, released two years earlier, placing his initials &quot;JS&quot; on the obverse. In the tense climate of the </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cold_War" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cold_War" rel="nofollow"><span style="color: purple">Cold War</span></a><span style="color: purple">, a rumor spread that these initials stood for </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_Stalin" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_Stalin" rel="nofollow"><span style="color: purple">Joseph Stalin</span></a><span style="color: purple">, placed there by a Soviet agent in the mint.</span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Franklin_half_dollar#cite_note-JS-0" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Franklin_half_dollar#cite_note-JS-0" rel="nofollow"><span style="color: purple">[1]</span></a><span style="color: purple"> Perhaps to avoid further controversy, Sinnock used his full initials &quot;JRS&quot; on the half (Stalin&#039;s middle name was Vissarionovich.)&quot;</span></p><p><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Franklin_half_dollar" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Franklin_half_dollar" rel="nofollow">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Franklin_half_dollar</a></p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><img src="http://i259.photobucket.com/albums/hh297/IndianaCatbert/1959%20Cameo%20Franklin/CameoObv.jpg" class="bbCodeImage wysiwygImage" alt="" unselectable="on" /></p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><img src="http://i259.photobucket.com/albums/hh297/IndianaCatbert/1959%20Cameo%20Franklin/CameoRev.jpg" class="bbCodeImage wysiwygImage" alt="" unselectable="on" /></p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>My 1959 proof has a mintage of 1.15M, not particularly scarce. The lowest number of proofs were made in 1950. All proofs were minted at the Philadelphia mint - perhaps appropriate given the Liberty bell reverse! </p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><br /></p><p>History:</p><ul> <li>Alaska admitted as the 49th state&quot;</li> <li>Bozo the Clown&quot; live children&#039;s show premieres on TV <br /> USAF concludes less than 1% of UFO&#039;s are unknown objects <br /> 1st transcontinental coml jet flight (American) (LA to New York for $301)</li> <li>Soviet Union wins 62-37 for 1st international basketball loss by US</li> <li>Texas Instruments requests patent of IC (Integrated Circuit)</li> <li>1st successful test-fire of Titan ICBM</li> <li>Barbie doll goes on sale</li> <li>Boston Celtic Bob Cousy sets NBA record with 28 assists Boston Celtics score 173 points against Minneapolis Lakers</li> <li>U.S. House joins Senate approving Hawaii statehood</li> <li>Cuba invades Panama</li> <li>Dr. Leakey discovers oldest human skull (600,000 years old)</li> <li>VP Nixon argues with Khrushchev, known as &quot;Kitchen Debate&quot;</li> <li>Soviet Union&#039;s Luna-2 is 1st spacecraft to land on the Moon <br /> Rod Serling&#039;s &quot;Twilight Zone&quot; premieres on CBS-TV</li> </ul><p>And, finally, Catbert is born in Ohio under grey sheet skies![/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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