Proof Franklin Half Dollar 1957

For collectors, the BU Franklin Half Dollars aren't much of an investment, as much as a fun collection for beginners. Experienced collectors save their money for the Proof Franklin Half Dollars, which carry much higher numismatic values and much lower mintages. The Philadelphia Mint is the only mint who produced the Proof Franklins from 1950-1963, for their Proof Set series.These hidden gems of the coin world are only available a few at a time and the ability to restock our inventory is never guaranteed. With just above 1.2 million minted in 1957, the 1957 Proof Franklin is available for your collection! Shining from its glossy mirror-like finish, the 1957 Franklin even catches investors' wandering eyes.

Right before the Franklin Half Dollar was minted, the Mint Director at the time, Nellie Tayloe Ross, long since admired Benjamin Franklin, so when it was time to replace the Walking Liberty, she knew which design would be next. Ross approached the Mint Engraver, John R. Sinnock, and asked him to design a portrait of Franklin for the new half dollar. Sinnock used past designs of his to get the new half dollar underway but would not see the end result. Sinnock died before the completion of the Franklin Half Dollar, leaving it up to his successor, Gilroy Roberts, to finish the job. Once the final design was finished, the Mint Director took it to the Commission of Fine Arts to get it approved. The Commission of Fine Arts didn't approve of the Liberty bell's crack being pictured, on the reverse of the Franklin half dollar, in fear of it being ridiculed by the public. Although the design was not approved, the US Mint still minted it as the new design.

• Denomination: N/A
• Year: 1957
• Diameter: N/A
• Mint Mark: N/A
• Thickness: N/A
• Grade: Ungraded