Miami Valley Coin Club

Great Coin Stories: The Story Makes The Coin

The 1792 half disme (pronounced as “deem”) is widely considered to be the first U.S. coin struck under the authority of the Mint Act of 1792. President George Washington referred to the half disme as “a small beginning”. And small it was indeed: diameter 17.5 millimeters, weight 1.35 grams.

Folklore suggests that the obverse portrait is that of Martha Washington. The same folklore claims that the silver used to strike the first half dismes came from Mrs. Washington’s personal silverware. There is, however, no supporting evidence of the silver’s true origin nor of use of a likeness of Martha.

It is believed that between 1,500 and 2,500 specimens were struck by the Mint. Of that number, it is believed that about 10% survive today. A specimen strike from the Starr collection, graded MS67 by PCGS sold for $1,322,500 on April 26, 2006. The highest numerically graded piece, an NGC MS68, sold for $1,500,000 by private treaty transaction in 2007.