Item number: A1234

Year: AD 1836

Material: Gold

Size: 21.4 x 21.4 mm

Manufactured by: Philadelphia Mint

Provenance: Heritage Auctions 2024

This is a “Classic Head Half Eagle” gold coin minted in AD 1836 during the presidency of Andrew Jackson at the Philadelphia Mint, with a total mintage for that year of 553,147 coins.

The obverse of the coin features a left-facing portrait of Liberty, designed by engraver William Kness. Liberty’s curled hair is adorned with a headband inscribed with the word “LIBERTY.” This portrait, used for gold coin designs from AD 1834 to AD 1839, is referred to as the “Classic Head.” Surrounding the portrait are 13 six-pointed stars, symbolising the original 13 states of the United States at the time of independence. The issuance year, “1836,” is engraved at the bottom of the portrait.

The reverse side of the coin features a majestic eagle with its wings spread and head raised to the left. On its chest is a shield decorated with stars and stripes, while its talons grip both a laurel branch and three arrows. Surrounding the eagle is the inscription “UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,” and at the bottom, “5 D.” indicates the coin’s denomination of five dollars. In numismatics, a five-dollar gold coin is referred to as a “Half Eagle.”

In AD 1836, the coin was issued during the presidency of Andrew Jackson, who, to address the rampant issuance of paper currency and speculative land trading, signed the Specie Circular into law on July 11 of that year. This mandate required that purchases of western lands be conducted exclusively with gold and silver coin, or “hard currency.” This policy led to a liquidity crisis for the Second Bank of the United States, a national bank, particularly because it had previously engaged in speculative lending backed by paper banknotes, with gold and silver reserves amounting to only 20% of its liabilities.

To make matters worse, the bank was embroiled in a scandal involving three senior officers who attempted to fraudulently seize control. In the following year, the bank went bankrupt after the federal government, its major shareholder, withdrew its funds. The collapse of the Second Bank triggered the Panic of 1837, the first major financial crisis in U.S. history. The conflict between Jackson and the banking industry became known as the Bank War, and Jackson, who deeply despised banks, famously inscribed “I killed the bank” on his tombstone as a reflection of his role in the bank’s downfall.

物件編號: A1234

年代: 公元 1836 年

材質: 黃金

尺寸: 21.4 x 21.4 mm

製造地: 費城造幣廠

來源: 海瑞德拍賣行 2024

這是一枚公元1836年，美國總統傑克森任內，費城造幣廠鑄造的「經典頭半鷹金幣」，該年度發行量為553,147枚。

錢幣正面為雕刻家威廉·克尼斯設計的自由女神左臉肖像，女神的捲髮上戴著一條鐫刻「LIBERTY」(自由)字樣的髮帶。這款公元1834至1839年作為金幣設計的肖像被稱作「經典頭」。人像的周圍環繞著13顆六芒星，象徵著美國獨立初期的13個州。人像下緣則鐫刻著發行年份「1836」字樣。

錢幣背面是一隻向左昂首的張翅雄鷹，胸前有一個星條紋裝飾的盾牌，鷹爪則抓著桂冠枝葉和三枝箭。老鷹周圍鐫刻國名「UNITED STATES OF AMERICA」，下緣「5 D.」則代表金幣面額為五美元。錢幣界將面額五美元的金幣稱作「半鷹」。

這枚錢幣發行的公元1836年，時任總統的傑克森為解決浮濫印刷紙幣和土地投機問題，於當年7月11日簽署通過《鑄幣流通令》，強制規定僅能以金幣和銀幣等硬貨幣進行西部土地的買賣。這項舉動使得作為國有銀行的「美國第二銀行」面臨銀根緊縮問題，尤其先前以紙本銀行券大肆提供投機性的放款，使其金銀準備量僅有相當於責任額的百分之二十。雪上加霜的是，銀行傳出有三位高級職員企圖以詐欺手段攫取控制權的醜聞，使得隔年銀行在大股東聯邦政府撤出資金後破產。第二銀行破產致使美國於公元1837年面對第一次金融大恐慌。這場傑克森跟銀行界的角力在後世被稱作「銀行戰爭」，痛恨銀行的傑克森更以「我殺死了銀行」作為他的墓誌銘。