By Charles Morgan and Hubert Walker for CoinWeek Notes …..
1972 marked the second production year for the copper-nickel-clad Kennedy Half Dollar. The denomination was spared the indignity of having its silver completely removed by Congress in 1965, but the billon silver composition did not circulate. Congress hoped that the base metal version would fare better. On the margins, it did, but the half dollar would never again be a fixture in commerce and likely won’t ever be unless a future Congress passes much-needed coinage reform.
The Denver Mint struck 141,890,000 Kennedy Half Dollars in 1972, which was half to its 1971 output. Denver half dollar mintages would continue to decline through 1974 and spike up to 1971 levels with the Bicentennial issue. Of course, the 1776-1976 Kennedy Half Dollar was struck for two years.
Things You Should Know About the 1972-D Kennedy Half Dollar Before You Buy or Sell
While the half dollar is not a denomination one typically encounters in circulation, a large number of clad-era halves can be acquired at face value by request at most banks. Oftentimes, local banks will have a small quantity of mixed-date rolls turned in by customers. Some banks will even allow customers to order half dollars in quantity; a box of half dollars, for instance, will contain 50 rolls of $10 worth of coins. It’s no guarantee that one will find a 1972-D Kennedy Half Dollar in any given box of coins, but an example will turn up eventually (along with the occasional silver or silver-clad half) with some effort.
A more convenient way to acquire a 1972-D Kennedy Half Dollar is by purchasing a 1972 Uncirculated Coin Set. The United States Mint sold 2,750,000 Uncirculated Coin Sets in 1972 at an issue price of $3.50 ($26.87 in 2024 inflation-adjusted dollars). Each set contains two pouches of coins, with one example of each denomination, struck at the Philadelphia and Denver mints. The total face value of the 1972 Uncirculated Coin Set is $1.82 and it routinely sells online for $10 or less.
Supposing that the Kennedy Halves are the most valuable coins in the set, one can reasonably assess the numismatic value of the 1972 Kennedy Half Dollar and the 1972-D Kennedy Half Dollar at less than $4 each. Recent eBay sales support this valuation.
Of course, this tells only part of the story. Some collectors pursue quality modern coins and will pay more for coins certified by CAC, NGC, and PCGS, if they are assigned grades MS66 or higher. Without getting into the expansive topic of coin grading (we’ve published a great article on the Sheldon Scale for those interested), 1972-D Kennedy Half Dollars will generally exhibit flashy luster, be mostly free of scratches in the coin’s focal areas, and demonstrate a sharp strike for the date. Copper-nickel-clad planchets generally do not strike up as well as silver and silver-clad planchets, but by 1972, the Mint was learning quite a bit about how to resolve this issue by using stronger die steel.
Most surviving Mint State examples of the 1972-D Kennedy Half Dollar will grade between MS64 and MS65 and are not good candidates for submission to the grading services. These coins generally sell for less than the cost of certification, which is why the number of coins certified by the grading services is not an accurate reflection of the Mint State survival rate of the coin.
A collector looking for an example in MS66 should be ready to spend $20 to $25. The prices are higher in MS67, but in 2024, one can purchase an example for much less than a few years ago. In 2024, Heritage sold a PCGS-graded coin for $216; in 2023, Stack’s Bowers sold another PCGS-graded piece for just $100. From 2017 to 2018, coins in this grade sold for $500 to $600 each!
1972-D Kennedy Half Dollar “No FG”: How to Cherrypick This Valuable Mint Error
The 1972-D Kennedy Half Dollar is known for several mint errors, from coins struck on the wrong planchets to others with missing clad layers, clipped edges, and strange striking errors. The most well-known mint error for the date is the “No FG”.
Let’s discuss what “No FG” means, why the error happened, and how to spot it.
First, “FG” are the initials of Frank Gasparro, the half dollar’s reverse designer. Gasparro’s initials appear between the eagle’s extended left leg (to the viewer’s right) and the tail feathers. In instances when this initial is not present (or is mostly not present) on a struck coin, it is known as a “No FG” Kennedy Half Dollar.
The absence of this feature is caused when a damaged die is repaired and the detail is polished off the face of the die. As you can see in the image above, the “FG” is clear on the image on the left. However, most of the initials have been effaced on the right image. If you look closely, it is possible to make out some of the shape below the remnants of the top of the “F” and “G”. NGC has attributed this coin as a “No FG”, but “No FG” errors exist without any trace of Gasparro’s initials. It is unclear if this makes any difference in the coin’s value. In Uncirculated Condition, 1972-D Kennedy Half Dollar “No FG” mint errors are scarce and command a significant premium.
* * *
1972-D Kennedy Half Dollar Market Data and Noteworthy Specimens
Top Population: PCGS MS68 (2, 12/2024), NGC MS68 (3, 12/2024), and CAC MS62 (1, 12/2024).
- PCGS MS67+ #81732512: Heritage Auctions, January 8, 2017, Lot 9987 – $1,645.
- PCGS MS67 #48117869: Heritage Auctions, May 7, 2024, Lot 23418 – $216.
- PCGS MS67 #3572710: Stack’s Bowers, April 12, 2023, Lot 91750 – $100.
- PCGS MS67 #21294660: Heritage Auctions, September 3, 2019, Lot 21234 – $216.
- PCGS MS67 #1608216: Heritage Auctions, October 2, 2018, Lot 21504 – $504. Old Green Holder.
- NGC MS67 #4382233-025: Heritage Auctions, November 7, 2017, Lot 22050 – $600.
- PCGS MS67 #18156511: Heritage Auctions, April 19, 2012, Lot 16332 – $238.05.
1972-D Kennedy Half Dollar “No FG” Market Data and Noteworthy Specimens
Top Population: PCGS MS66 (1, 12/2024), NGC MS65 (1, 12/2024), and CAC MS61 (1, 12/2024).
- NGC MS64 #6455406-001: Heritage Auctions, August 28, 2022, Lot 7120 – $1,500; Heritage Auctions, December 18, 2022, Lot 7177 – $900.
- PCGS MS63 #82279998: Heritage Auctions, April 4, 2017, Lot 15641 – $1,292.50.
- PCGS MS63 #14200752: “The Bristol Collection,” Heritage Auctions, September 11, 2016, Lot 7794 – $2,485.13.
* * *
Design
Obverse:
The central motif is an effigy of the 35th President of the United States, the late John Fitzgerald Kennedy. A war hero and (at the time) the youngest person ever to serve as president, Kennedy was inaugurated on January 20, 1961, and assassinated on November 22, 1963. The nation’s grief was such that Congress and the Mint rushed through a design change on the half-dollar denomination to commemorate him.
Atop the upper half of the rim is the inscription LIBERTY, with Kennedy’s hair covering the bottom portions of the letters “B”, “E”, and “R”. The date 1972 is cradled at the bottom of the coin, while the national motto IN GOD WE TRUST is inscribed in a straight line above the year but divided by the sharp truncation of Kennedy’s neck. The “D” mintmark of the Denver Mint is located above the date.
Gilroy Roberts’ initials are on the truncation line of Kennedy’s bust, above WE on the bottom right side of the coin.
Reverse:
Roberts’ assistant, Frank Gasparro, designed the reverse. He based the eagle on the Presidential Coat of Arms from the Seal of the President of the United States, which is based on the Great Seal of the United States. The Presidential Seal in its current form was finalized by President Harry S. Truman in 1945, though the number of stars on the seal (and hence the coin) went from 48 to 50 as Alaska and Hawaii entered the Union.
The heraldic eagle’s wings and legs are spread in four directions. The left talon (viewer’s right) holds arrows, a symbol of war, while the right claw (viewer’s left) grips an olive branch, a symbol of peace. It is tradition for the eagle to face one side or the other relative to national circumstances at the time of striking; in this instance, the eagle faces towards the olive branch despite America’s involvement in Vietnam and other conflicts around the world.
Frank Gasparro’s initials FG are between the eagle’s left leg and tail feathers.
A Union shield covers the eagle’s breast. Vertical bars representing the 13 red and white stripes of the American flag run down most of its face, representing the original 13 colonies of the United States. The top of the shield (a horizontal band is known in heraldry as a chief) features no stars.
Immediately above the eagle’s head is a scroll featuring the motto E PLURIBUS UNUM. The design behind and above the eagle, which consists of 15 rays, nine stars, and a mass of clouds, is called the glory and is a common design element of both heraldry and an earlier period of numismatics.
The legend UNITED STATES OF AMERICA runs clockwise along the top rim of the reverse, while the denomination HALF DOLLAR runs counterclockwise along the bottom. Dots are between the two inscriptions at both ends. Surrounding the eagle is a ring of 50 stars, representing the 50 states of the Union at the time of the coin’s production.
Edge:
The edge of the 1972-D Kennedy Half Dollar is reeded.
Designers
Gilroy Roberts was the ninth Chief Engraver of the U.S. Mint, serving from July 22, 1948, to February 11, 1965. His work with the Franklin Mint caused the United States Mint to let him go. Roberts is best remembered for his design of the Kennedy Half Dollar obverse.
Frank Gasparro was an American medalist and coin designer. After serving as Gilroy Roberts’s assistant engraver, he became the 10th Chief Engraver of the United States Mint, serving from 1965 to 1981. Besides the Kennedy Half Dollar reverse, Gasparro also designed the Lincoln Memorial Cent reverse, the Eisenhower Dollar obverse and regular reverse, and the Susan B. Anthony Dollar (View Designer’s Profile).
1972-D Kennedy Half Dollar Coin Specifications
| Country: | United States of America |
| Year of Issue: | 1972 |
| Denomination: | Half Dollar (50 Cents USD) |
| Mintmark: | D (Denver) |
| Mintage: | 141,890,000 |
| Alloy: | .750 Copper, .250 Nickel |
| Weight: | 11.34 g |
| Diameter: | 30.60 mm |
| Edge: | Reeded |
| OBV Designer: | Gilroy Roberts |
| REV Designer: | Frank Gasparro |
| Quality: | Business Strike |
* * *