As of 2012 a 1921 50 cents in MS-65 condition is valued at $250,000 to $350,000. Despite a mintage of 206,398 coins, there was a very low demand for 50-cent coins in the 1920s. The belief is that most of the 50-cent coins from 1920 and 1921 were melted (amounting to approximately 480,392 coins). The reason for the melting was that new coins were needed for 1929 and if coins from 1920 and 1921 were released into circulation, people would suspect counterfeit coins. According to legend, only 50 of these coins still exist (with only 3 known in mint state), and most of those are from Specimen Sets that were sold to people who visited the RC Mint.