The lowest mintage in the entire Walking Liberty series, and the number has a reason: in 1921 the Denver Mint, like every American mint, was consumed by the Pittman Act, legally obliged to strike millions of silver dollars to replace the ones melted in 1918. Half dollars were an afterthought that year, and Denver's afterthought came to exactly 208,000 coins. The 1921 trio, Philadelphia at 246,000, Denver at 208,000, San Francisco at 548,000, arrived after a two-year pause and went straight into circulation, where the 1920s wore them flat.
That is the whole recipe for a key date: tiny mintage, no saving, hard use. A 1921-D in any collectible grade earns respect, and the price of that respect has attracted every alteration trick in the book, which is why the date belongs to the counterfeit file as much as the mintage register.
The great danger with the 1921 trio is not worn coins, it is manufactured ones: common dates re-dated to 1921 and Philadelphia coins wearing an added D. On a coin this valuable in any grade, certification is not a premium service, it is the purchase.
| Issue | Mint | Mintage |
|---|---|---|
| 1921 Walking Liberty Half Dollar | Philadelphia | 246,000 |
| 1921-S Walking Liberty Half Dollar | San Francisco | 548,000 |
| 1921-D Walking Liberty Half Dollar | Denver | 208,000 |
Mintage figures: United States Mint (Annual Report of the Director of the Mint), Royal Canadian Mint records, and — for the 1935 banknote issue — Bank of Canada printage records as published in the Charlton Standard Catalogue of Canadian Government Paper Money, cross-checked across independent published references. Specifications: United States Mint coin specifications.