1842 Coronet Head Gold $5 Half Eagle Large Letters

Type 1 - No Motto - Liberty Head - Early Matron Gold Coins

What This Coin Looks Like (Obverse, Reverse, Mint Mark Location, Special Features, etc.):

1842 Liberty Head $5 Gold half Eagle - Large Letters
Mintage: N/A
Minted at: Philadelphia (No Mint Mark)
Designer – Engraver: Christian Gobrecht
Metal Composition: 90% Gold - 10% Copper
Diameter: 21.6 mm
Mass / Weight: 8.36 grams
Melt Value: $1,010.00
One major variety of the 1842 $5 Liberty Head Gold Half Eagle features larger letters on the reverse of the coin. This variety is slightly rarer and more valuable than the small letters variety and is easy to identify. The difference between the Large Letters vs Small Letters variety is depicted below in the example comparison image:

1842 Large Letters vs Small Letters - $5 Liberty Head Gold Half Eagle - Difference and Comparison

Coin Value Chart

Typical retail values in USD based on grade/condition. Numismatic portion last updated February 2026; precious-metal portion updates live.

1842 Coronet Head Gold $5 Half Eagle Large Letters value chart – grades from Good-4 through Proof
G4 VG8 F12 VF20 EF40 AU50 MS60 MS63 PR63
– – – $1,592 $2,962 $5,136 $15,347 $31,389 –
USA Coin Book Estimated Value of 1842 Coronet Head Gold $5 Half Eagle Large Letters is Worth $1,592 in Average Condition and can be Worth $15,347 to $31,389 or more in Uncirculated (MS+) Mint Condition.

Learn How to use Coin Price Charts · Learn About Grading Coins · The melt value above is the bare-metal floor. See melt values for every US coin.
US Coin Metal Content Values

More 1842 Gold $5 Half Eagle Mints / Varieties

View Entire Coronet Head Gold $5 Half Eagle Coin List

Nearby Coronet Head Years / Mints

View Entire Coronet Head Gold $5 Half Eagle Coin List

Marketplace listings for this coin

Showing 1–0 of 0 items
Items per page:

How to Use the Coin Value Tables

These tables show estimated retail values for each date, mint mark, and variety across the most commonly collected grades. Here’s how to read them.

Sample Table (Lincoln Wheat Cent)

G4 VG8 F12 VF20 EF40 AU50 MS60 MS65 PR65
378 652 943 1,213 1,325 1,507 2,755 11,565 –

Understanding Each Column

G4 → PR65 (Grade Columns)
Estimated retail values in the most commonly collected grades on the Sheldon scale:
  • G4 – Good
  • VG8 – Very Good
  • F12 – Fine
  • VF20 – Very Fine
  • EF40 – Extremely Fine
  • AU50 – About Uncirculated
  • MS60 / MS65 – Mint State (Uncirculated)
  • PR65 – Proof
A dash (–) means pricing data is unavailable, the grade is extremely rare/non-existent for that issue, or (on modern coins) the piece is worth face value in that grade.

About the Prices

Values are estimates of what a collector would typically pay a dealer or another collector. They are based on long-term tracking of catalogs, dealer lists, eBay and Heritage results, our own marketplace, and live precious-metal prices for silver, gold, and platinum issues.

For the most recent years we use running mintage totals from the U.S. Mint until sales of a product end. Once a product is discontinued, the final cumulative figure becomes the official mintage.

Prefer the longer reference version? Open the full Encyclopedia guide