Maryland Tercentenary half dollar

Maryland Tercentenary half dollar
United States
Value50 cents (0.50 US dollars)
Mass12.5 g
Diameter30.61 mm (1.20 in)
Thickness2.15 mm (0.08 in)
EdgeReeded
Composition
  • 90.0% silver
  • 10.0% copper
Silver0.36169 troy oz
Years of minting1934
Mintage25,000 with 15 pieces for the Assay Commission
Mint marksNone, all pieces struck at the Philadelphia Mint without mint mark
Obverse
DesignBust of The 2nd Baron Baltimore
DesignerHans Schuler
Design date1934
Reverse
DesignArms of Maryland
DesignerHans Schuler
Design date1934

The Maryland Tercentenary half dollar was a commemorative fifty-cent piece issued by the United States Bureau of the Mint in 1934. It depicts Cecil Calvert, 2nd Baron Baltimore on the obverse and the Coat of Arms of Maryland on the reverse.

The Maryland Tercentenary Commission sought a coin in honor of the 300th anniversary of the arrival of English settlers in Maryland. The state's two senators introduced legislation for such a piece, and it passed both houses of Congress with no opposition. A design had already been prepared by Professor Hans Schuler; it passed review by the Commission of Fine Arts, though there was controversy then and since over whether Lord Baltimore, a Cavalier and Catholic, would have worn a collar typical of Puritans.

The Commission sold about 15,000 of the full issue of 25,000 for $1 each (equivalent to $23 in 2023), and thereafter discounted the price for large sales to dealers and speculators, getting as little as sixty-five cents per coin. They increased in value over time, and are now valued in the low hundreds of dollars.