1853 $0.50 gold coin? Can't seem to find this coin in reference material?

Geoman

I took a call over the weekend that someone was looking for information on a coin he has. I haven't seen it. However, he described it to me as being a gold coin, dated 1853, that says half dollar on it and also California. He says it is pretty small, about the size of your pinky fingernail.

I can't find this in my reference book. Does anyone have info on this? Or does this even make sense? If possible, how about a picture.

The reason he called is he was saying he has a small jar with a few coins in it. Some wheat pennies, a few morgan dollars (common dates) and this one coin referenced above that is in a plastic holder. He wants to know if it is valuable, as he is thinking of making it into a jewerly piece for his daughter.

Thanks!

ziggy29

Sounds like California fractional gold to me.

GoldenEyeNumismatics

Before you give him any type of value for it, make sure it's a genuine Cal Gold piece. Fake ones are extremely common

MrEureka

And before it goes in jewelry, find out what it's worth.

jonathanb

Two simple rules of thumb:

It doesn't have an explicit denomination, it's almost certainly fake. That is, "1/2 dollar" might be real, but "1/2 gold" is probably not.

If it has a bear on the reverse, it's almost certainly fake.

Some fakes have a little bit of value, but in the few tens of dollars. Check eBay.

PerryHall

The Red book lists California fractional gold coins by type with values in various grades. A pic would help us identify the BG variety. BG is for Breen-Gillio who authored the standard reference for this series.