1923-S Monroe Doctrine Half Dollar
The 1923-S Monroe Doctrine Centennial half dollar was issued for the 100th anniversary of the Monroe Doctrine, the policy stating that the United States would not tolerate interference from European powers in New World nations. It was named for President James Monroe, who announced it in December 1823. His secretary of state, John Quincy Adams, authored the policy. Both men are shown on the obverse of the coin.
The commemorative was championed by an unlikely benefactor: the nascent film industry in Los Angeles, which today is the nation’s second-largest city. A century ago, it had just entered the top 10. Reeling from a series of scandals, the film industry successfully won authorization for the coin. It was sold in conjunction with an expo to promote the city and its industry in the summer of 1923. A mintage of over 270,000 was approved, but sales were disappointing; many that weren’t sold were dumped into circulation.
Today, the Monroe Doctrine half dollar is among the most affordable classic commemoratives. Examples in low Mint State can be found for under $100. And a purported example submitted to Numismatic Guaranty Company (NGC) shows that counterfeiters will target any coin they think will make them a profit.
The coin submitted to NGC is mostly copper and zinc, not the expected 90-percent silver. But even if a collector did not have access to the equipment needed to run a metallurgical analysis, other clues point to the coin’s spurious nature.
The piece has odd surfaces that don’t look like those on genuine examples. It also shows signs of being artificially worn. Counterfeiters do this to give a coin a more convincing appearance and to distract from any deficiencies. Luckily, they’re apparent to a skilled eye. On the obverse, the tops of the letters beneath the busts are incomplete. Deeper parts of the design lack detail. Also, the devices are much flatter than they should be.
Any coin worth collecting has the potential to be a target for counterfeiters. NGC was founded to make the coin marketplace more secure, and its determinations of authenticity and grade are backed by the NGC Guarantee.
A version of this article appears in the January 2024 issue of The Numismatist (money.org).