After the generally (and arguably) dull designs that had appeared on previous half dollar coins in the United States (most recently the Barber half-dollar), the walking Liberty design of 1916 was a sudden and welcome surprise. The obverse of the walking Liberty fifty-cent coin showed Liberty walking towards the Sun, her hair flowing majestically all around her as she raised her right arm gracefully and the Sun’s rays emanated to her right. This coin’s complex design was hard to strike, despite much work being done on it over the years; it was replaced in 1948 by the Benjamin Franklin half-dollar.
The walking Liberty half-dollar, like all half-dollars to that point, was made of silver. Proofs and high-graded examples are beloved by collectors, and many different vendors sell many types of walking Liberty half-dollars to buyers with all types of approaches, collections, budgets, and tastes.
