***Auction Highlight*** 1937 Antietam Old Commem H

***Auction Highlight*** 1937 Antietam Old Commem H
***Auction Highlight*** 1937 Antietam Near Top POP! Old Commem Half Dollar 50c Graded ms68 By SEGS. A commemorative half dollar was issued to mark the 75th anniversary of the Battle of Antietam, during which General McClellan thwarted General Lee’s invasion of Maryland. This followed a separate coin recently issued for the anniversary of the Battle of Gettysburg.The obverse of the Battle of Antietam Half Dollar features the profile portraits of General George B. McClellan and General Robert E. Lee. On the reverse of the coin is an image of the Burnside Bridge, which was an important tactical objective of the battle. The designs for the coin were created by William Marks Simpson, who had also designed the recent commemorative issues for the Norfolk and Roanoke Island. All of these coins include an unusually large number of inscriptions.A maximum of 50,000 pieces were authorized to be produced. The entire number was struck at the Philadelphia Mint and send to the Washington County Historical Society, which offered the 1937 Antietam Half Dollars for $1.65 each. The general market for commemorative coins had declined by this time and sales were slow. Eventually 32,000 pieces were returned to the mint for melting. Of the three Civil War themed early commemoratives (Stone Mountain, Gettysburg, and Antietam), the final issue had the lowest mintage. A Corey's Pick, Bid to Win, Don't let it get Away Coin