$5 Classic Head Gold Half Eagle 1834-1838:

Chief Engraver of the US Mint, William Kneass, was told by the Director of the Mint to redesign the $5 Gold Liberty Half Eagle coin. Kneass’ Miss Liberty was younger, thinner, had more hair and had a more masculine appearance. Kneass designed Miss Liberty to face left, her hair flowing down her neck. She wore a headband which was inscribed with the word “LIBERTY” on it. She was surrounded by 13 six-pointed stars and the date was directly under her bust. On the reverse, the eagle remained the same but the scroll with “E PLURIBUS UNUM” on it was removed. The legend “UNITED STATES OF AMERICA” and the denomination “5 D.” remained as previous.

During the final year of striking, 1838, the Philadelphia Mint’s production moved up to striking 286,588 coins. The newly opened mints in both Charlotte and Dahlonega began to strike these coins. As this was the first time that mintmarks were required, the “C” and “D” mintmarks were awkwardly placed on the obverse of the coin, just above the date.