The United States' booming economy at the height of World War II resulted in a mintage of 53,190,000 circulation strike half dollars at the Philadelphia Mint in 1943. This is the single highest mintage for a half dollar issue up until that point in time, and it would not be surpassed until the 1963-D Franklin issue reported a mintage of 67,069,292 pieces. Far and away the most available Walking Liberty half dollar in Mint State, the 1943 Walking Liberty Half Dollar is one of the quintessential type issues in this beautifully designed and perennially popular series. Examples that approach perfection, however, are exceedingly rare and present an imposing challenge to even the most persistent of collectors. This is true of the Walking Liberty series as a whole, in fact, for PCGS has certified only 10 examples of the type in MS-68+, and none finer.

View 1943 Walking Liberty Half Dollar Auction Results

The example to the left was sold by Stack's Bowers Galleries in June 2021 as part of the Lulu Collection, the #1 all-time finest PCGS Walking Liberty Half Dollar Short Set, where it realized $120,000.