Major design types are usually supplemented with variations such as coins with and without arrows, rays, drapery or mottoes. A complete collection is impossible for all but the most wealthy so compromises and hard choices must be made. Some think that type collecting is the most enjoyable specialty in U.S. coin collecting.

United States Type Coins

Photos used with permission and courtesy of Heritage Auction Galleries

Description:
Capped Bust half dollars produced at the end of 1836 were some of the first coins made using new steam coinage presses and a close collar, which restricted expansion of the planchet during striking while at the same time giving a reeded edge to the coin. Capped Bust reeded edge halves were produced for only four years, with the final year overlapping the first year of the Liberty Seated design. The Seated motif was first used on the Gobrecht silver dollars in 1836, then half dimes, dimes, quarters, and finally the half dollar. Well-known portraitist Thomas Sully is credited with Liberty’s image, which was reproduced by Mint engraver Christian Gobrecht for coinage. The neoclassical art was representative of mid-nineteenth century tastes, but the design was used nearly to the end of the century before being replaced.

The 1839 Liberty Seated half dollar was produced in two versions. The No Drapery type refers to the absence of extra drapery below Liberty’s elbow. An additional diagnostic, useful to distinguish more heavily worn coins, is the rock upon which Liberty rests. It is larger than the one shown on the Drapery type, easily identified in side-by-side comparison of the two types because the left edge of the stone is closer to the bottom left star. The Drapery 1839 version and every issue thereafter has an extra drape of cloth extending down and forward from the elbow to the leg, and the smaller rock is noticeably farther from the first star.

The obverse shows Liberty seated on a rock in flowing robes, head turned back to her right, with long locks of curled hair cascading down her back and across the shoulder, and tied with a barely discernable band. Her left arm is bent, holding a pole topped by a liberty cap, while the extended right arm supports a Union shield leaning against the rock. Across the center of the shield is a curved banner with the word LIBERTY. Thirteen six-point stars form a circle around the top two-thirds of the coin, inside a dentilled rim, seven stars to the left, five to the right, and one between Liberty’s head and the Liberty cap. The date is centered at the bottom.

The reverse has a centered left-facing eagle, with extended but partly folded wings. The eagle clutches three arrows in the left claw and an olive branch in the right, though fletching is shown for only two of the three arrowheads. A shield is placed over the chest. UNITED STATES OF AMERICA forms a concentric arc to the inside of the top two-thirds of the dentilled rim, with the denomination of HALF DOL. at the bottom visually completing the circle. No mintmark is shown on this Philadelphia issue.

Nearly two million business strike 1839 Liberty halves of both types were produced but census/ population reports show only a few hundred No Drapery examples, which are considerably more expensive than the Drapery type. Prices are moderate to mid-XF grades but are expensive to extremely expensive (and rare) finer than that, particularly as Gem or finer. Very few proofs of the issue have been certified, and all are expensive to extremely expensive.

Specifications:

Designer: Christian Gobrecht (from a Thomas Sully drawing)
Circulation Mintage: 1,972,400 (includes both 1839 types)
Proof Mintage:5 (estimated; includes both 1839 types)
Denomintion: $0.50 Fifty cents (05/100)
Diameter: ±30.6 mm; reeded edge
Metal content: 90% silver, 10% copper
Weight: ±13.36 grams
Varieties:None listed in census/ population reports, but a “thin numerals and claws” variety has been identified.

Additional Resources :

CoinFacts: www.coinfacts.com
Coin Encyclopedia: www.ngccoin.com
Liberty Seated Half Dollar discussion forum: www.seated.org/boards
The Complete Guide to Liberty Seated Half Dollars. Randy Wiley, Bill Bugert. DLRC Press.
The Official Red Book: A Guide Book of United States Coins. R.S Yeoman (author), Kenneth Bressett (editor). Whitman Publishing.
A Guide Book of United States Type Coins. Q. David Bowers. Whitman Publishing.
United States Coinage: A Study by Type. Ron Guth and Jeff Garrett. Whitman Publishing.
The Experts Guide to Collecting & Investing in Rare Coins. Q. David Bowers. Whitman Publishing.
The U.S. Mint and Coinage. Don Taxay. Arco Publishing
Walter Breen’s Encyclopedia of U.S. Coins. Walter Breen. Doubleday.

Last Updated : 09/16/2008

Photos used with permission and courtesy of Heritage Auction Galleries

Description:
Following a two-year gap in production, mintage of half dimes resumed in 1800. The obverse portrait of Liberty remained, though slightly updated, but the reverse was extensively modified. Most noticeable, and giving name to the type, was the change of the eagle to the outstretched wing, heraldic style copied from the Great Seal of the United States. This design was first used on gold quarter eagles and half eagles, and then dimes and dollars, in the late 1790s. The Union Shield across the body of the eagle uses horizontal parallel lines, called azures, to represent the color blue. The bottom part of the shield uses vertical parallel lines, called pales, to represent red stripes, while the alternating open spaces represent white stripes. Either because of limited demand from bullion depositors or the Mint’s inability to produce the denomination in quantity, relatively low numbers of half dimes were produced in the early 1800s. Few have survived, perhaps lost in the normal conduct of business or melted in subsequent times as silver bullion. Mintage of this series of half dimes never exceeded 40,000 pieces, and none were produced in 1804. After the 1805 issue, half dimes were not produced again until 1829, in the new Capped Bust design by William Kneass.

On the obverse a youthful Liberty faces right, long hair cascading down her neck, with a decorative ribbon tied at the back. Shoulders and neckline are loosely draped with rippled cloth. The word LIBERTY is centered at the top inside the border dentils, with the date centered at the bottom. Thirteen six-point stars fill the spaces between the date and LIBERTY, seven to the left and six to the right. The 1800 LIBEKTY variety is missing most of the horizontal top bar of the letter R, giving a first-glance impression of being a letter K.

The reverse displays UNITED STATES OF AMERICA around the edge of the coin inside a dentilled rim, UNITED and STATES, and OF and AMERICA separated by the tips of the eagle’s outstretched wings. The centrally placed eagle holds in its beak a loop of a banner displaying E PLURIBUS UNUM. The banner curls in front of the eagle’s right wing but behind its left wing. The eagle’s body is covered by a Union Shield, and its left claw holds an olive branch, the right a cluster of arrows. Thirteen small six-point stars are arranged above the eagle, six in the top row, five in the row below, and one to each side of the eagle’s head. Above the stars, below STATES OF is a concentric line of clouds stretching from wing to wing. No denomination or mintmark appears on the coins; all were minted in Philadelphia.

A few hundred half dimes have been certified, more dated 1800 than for any other year of the type. A few of the 1800 coins have been certified as prooflike. Prices of Heraldic Eagle half dimes are lower than comparable grades of the Small Eagle half dimes but still expensive, even as Very Fine. All Mint State examples are expensive, extremely so as Gem or finer. The 1802 half dime is very expensive to extremely expensive in all grades, and is unknown as Mint State in census/ population reports. The 1805 date, the second lowest mintage of the type, is priced higher all dates (except 1802) as VF30 or finer, and is uncommon in Mint State. The Small 8, 1803 type has slightly higher prices than the Large 8 type in most grades. No proofs are known of the Heraldic Eagle half dime.

Specifications:

Designer: Robert Scot
Circulation Mintage: high 40,000 (1800, including the LIBEKTY type), low 3,060 (1802)
Proof Mintage:None
Denomintion: $0.05 Five cents (05/100)
Diameter: ±16.5 mm; reeded edge
Metal content: 89.24% silver, 10.76% copper
Weight: ±1.35 grams
Varieties:Extensively studied and a few known, most representing minor differences in the positioning of design elements. Best known are the 1800 “LIBEKTY”, so named because a broken or defective R punch produced a graphic that looks like the letter K, and the 1803 Small 8 and Large 8 varieties.

Additional Resources :

CoinFacts: www.coinfacts.com
Coin Encyclopedia: www.ngccoin.com
Federal Half Dimes. Russell J. Logan, John W. McCloskey. John Reich Collectors Society.
The Official Red Book: A Guide Book of United States Coins. R.S Yeoman (author), Kenneth Bressett (editor). Whitman Publishing.
A Guide Book of United States Type Coins. Q. David Bowers. Whitman Publishing.
United States Coinage: A Study by Type. Ron Guth and Jeff Garrett. Whitman Publishing.
The Experts Guide to Collecting & Investing in Rare Coins. Q. David Bowers. Whitman Publishing.
The U.S. Mint and Coinage. Don Taxay. Arco Publishing
Walter Breen’s Encyclopedia of U.S. Coins. Walter Breen. Doubleday.

Last Updated : 09/12/2008

Photos used with permission and courtesy of Heritage Auction Galleries

Description:
James B. Longacre’s Indian Head design for the cent debuted in 1859. The previous Flying Eagle design had been minted for only three years (including the 1856 pattern, usually considered a regular issue by collectors). The apparent reason for the change from the Flying Eagle design was weakness in the strike, brought about because high relief areas on both sides of the coin were opposite each other. Longacre himself, perhaps with assistance from Anthony C. Paquet, in 1858 started producing patterns for a replacement cent that used both the Flying Eagle and the Indian Head motifs. Much has been written about the incongruity of depicting a woman with an Indian chief war bonnet, even when abstracted as a representation of Liberty. Longacre, however, in a letter to Mint Director James R. Snowden expressed the belief that the headdress was a fitting representation of the primitive nature of America’s nationality, and that such a depiction of Liberty was not at all contrary to the sensibility of the “intelligent American.”

The reverse laurel wreath design was modified in 1860 to an oak wreath and a narrow Union shield. Reasons for the change are not known today, though some have speculated that with the Civil War looming the shield was meant to portray a sense of unity. Millions of Indian Head cents were produced, and by the end of 1860 there was an abundance of one cent coins, both Flying Eagle and Indian Head, so many that the coins were considered a nuisance. Debts of multiple dollars were being paid with the cents, provoking a negative reaction from business owners (much as could be expected if the same were done by a consumer today). By 1862, however, the United States was deeply engaged in the Civil War. With an uncertain outcome of that conflict not only were silver and gold coins hoarded but so were copper coins. Production of the cents nearly tripled from 1861 to 1862, and then almost doubled again in 1863, but still the coins were hoarded. Demand for cents was such that those who wanted them often paid a premium over face value (up to 4% in New York and Massachusetts). Privately issued notes, encased postage stamps, fractional currency, and a multitude of tokens were seen in commerce along with the U.S. cent, but the cent was preferred by the public. Not until 1864 did the situation ease, the same year that marked the transition from a copper-nickel cent composition to bronze.

Liberty’s face on the cent is similar to Longacre’s 1854 three dollar gold piece, and also bears resemblance to his 1849 gold one dollar and double eagle Liberty portraits. Wearing a beaded necklace, Liberty faces left. On her head is a nine-feathered Indian war bonnet with a band displaying LIBERTY. Locks of hair drape down the back, and one end of the diamond-patterned head band curls slightly to the front, with the other end somewhat hidden between the hair and the bottom feather. UNITED STATES follows along a dentilled border to the left, OF AMERICA along the right. The date is at the bottom.

The reverse has a concentric two-part wreath inside a dentilled rim, tied together at the bottom by a ribbon that also binds three arrows. The wreath is mostly composed of oak leaves with acorns, though another type of leaf is shown at the bottom on the left side. The top ends of the wreath separate to allow for the placement of a small Union shield, and ONE CENT is prominently displayed in the center of the flan. All copper-nickel Indian Head cents were produced in Philadelphia; no mintmark is displayed.

Thousands of business strike copper-nickel Indian Head cents have been certified, including a very few prooflike specimens. Examples are moderately priced until Premium Gem for most issues. Prices for the 1860 Pointed Bust variety are higher than other issues as Mint State and finer, much more so as near-Gem and finer. A few hundred proof coins have been certified, including some designated Cameo and Deep Cameo. Proof coin prices are moderate, but increase at Select Uncirculated grades to expensive as Gem or finer. Prices for 1861 proofs are moderately higher priced than other issues, significantly so as Gem and finer.

Specifications:

Designer: James B. Longacre
Circulation Mintage: high 49,840,000 (1863), low 13,740,000 (1864, copper-nickel composition. Additional 1864 business strike coins were minted in bronze.)
Proof Mintage:high 1,000 (1860 and 1861, estimated), low 370 (1864, copper-nickel composition, estimated. Additional 1864 proof coins were minted in bronze.)
Denomintion: $0.01 One cent (1/100)
Diameter: ±19 mm, plain edge
Metal content: 88% copper, 12% nickel
Weight: ±4.67 grams
Varieties:Very few known, primarily date and die doubling examples. The best known variety is the 1860 Pointed Bust, so-called because the tip of the bust (to the left) is more pointed than the rounded end typically seen.

Additional Resources :

CoinFacts: www.coinfacts.com
Coin Encyclopedia: www.ngccoin.com
A Guide Book of Flying Eagle and Indian Head Cents. Richard Snow. Whitman Publishing.
The Official Red Book: A Guide Book of United States Coins. R.S Yeoman (author), Kenneth Bressett (editor). Whitman Publishing.
A Guide Book of United States Type Coins. Q. David Bowers. Whitman Publishing.
United States Coinage: A Study by Type. Ron Guth and Jeff Garrett. Whitman Publishing.
The Experts Guide to Collecting & Investing in Rare Coins. Q. David Bowers. Whitman Publishing.
The U.S. Mint and Coinage. Don Taxay. Arco Publishing
Walter Breen’s Encyclopedia of U.S. Coins. Walter Breen. Doubleday.

Last Updated : 09/12/2008

Photos used with permission and courtesy of Heritage Auction Galleries

Description:
Though it might seem to be a modern phenomenon, the problem of uncirculating dollar coins has a long history. The metal value of these large silver coins often lead to them being melted as bullion rather than being spent for everyday commerce. In 1873 Congress responded to this recurring issue by suspending production of silver dollars for domestic use, at the same time creating a new Trade dollar for export. That coinage change reduced the government’s need for silver, but unfortunately coincided with the release of vast numbers of European silver coins into the international market and increased raw silver production from domestic mines. With high production levels and reduced demand, American mining interests needed a market for their product, which was provided by the 1878 Bland-Allison Act. This Act required the Treasury to purchase millions of ounces of silver bullion each month so that a new silver dollar could be made; the dollar chosen because that denomination used more silver than coins of lesser face value. Mint Director Henry P. Linderman selected a pattern half dollar produced by assistant engraver George T. Morgan as the motif for the new coin. Morgan’s model for Liberty’s portrait was Anna Williams, a Philadelphia school teacher, who reportedly lost her job when news of her posing for the coin image became known. After modifications to adapt the pattern designs to the larger dollar, the first Morgans were produced in 1878.

Millions of silver dollars were minted but the coins still did not extensively circulate, except in the West where “hard money” was favored over paper currency. Bland-Allison and subsequent legislation that required bullion purchases eventually exhausted silver stockpiles in 1904. Production of Morgans went on hiatus, and unneeded silver dollars ended up in storage in government vaults. However, because of a subsequent increase in silver prices, nearly three hundred million of the stored dollars were melted in 1918 under the provisions of the Pittman Act. In 1921, even though millions of the coins could still be found in government vaults, nearly 87 million new Morgan dollars were minted. But the storage of silver dollars was about to end. Beginning in the 1930s and continuing through the early 1960s, rising collector coin and bullion prices resulted in a steady outflow of dollar coins from the Treasury, until halted in 1964 by the government. Remaining silver dollars were dispersed in the early 1970s through 1980 by the General Services Administration via mail-bid sales. The GSA sales, combined with the discovery and distribution of other privately-held Morgan dollar hoards heightened collector interest in the series, which continues unabated today.

Morgan’s somewhat austere Liberty faces left, dominating the obverse. Liberty’s curled hair, over the forehead and down the back, is topped by a liberty cap with a LIBERTY banner at the front, above which are small branches of wheat, cotton, and maple. Forming a concentric circle inside the dentilled rim are E PLURIBUS UNUM at the top, each word separated by a centered dot, and the date at the bottom. Separating the two legends are thirteen small six-point starts, seven on the left and six on the right, a solid style reminiscent the Star of David rather than the edged-ray style of previously depicted stars. Morgan’s initial M is along the truncation of the neck.

The reverse shows an eagle with outstretched wings, tips reaching nearly to the dentils encircling the rim. The eagle’s left claw clutches three arrows, the right a solitary olive branch. Inside the rim is UNITED STATES OF AMERICA around the top two-thirds, and ONE DOLLAR at the bottom. A six-point star separates ONE and UNITED to the left, and DOLLAR and AMERICA to the right. Above the eagle, in a more stylized font than used elsewhere on the coin, is the phrase In God We trust (upper and lower case as reproduced here). Surrounding the eagle, inside the legends, is a nearly concentric partial wreath of grain sheaves, tied at the bottom with a double-looped ribbon. The letter M is on the left loop, the first time a designer’s initial was displayed on both sides of a coin. New Orleans (O, 1879-1904), Carson City (CC, 1878-1885, 1889-1893), San Francisco (S, 1878-1904, 1921), and Denver (D, 1921) mintmarks are located below the ribbon loops, above DO in DOLLAR. The Philadelphia Mint produced Morgans every year of the issue, but no circulation strikes are known for 1895, all presumed melted.

Other than for scarce or rare issues and varieties, business strike Morgan silver dollars are represented by the thousands in census/ population reports, and prices are moderate even as Gem for some plentiful dates. Prooflike and deep mirror prooflike examples are common, some of which are expensive in higher Mint State grades. Coins with higher prices are the 1879-CC, 1883-S, 1884-S, 1886-O, 1889-CC, 1892-S, 1893-S, 1895-O, and 1895-S, often very expensive as Gem or finer. Deep mirror prooflike examples and several die varieties are much more expensive than standard issues for a given date. Proof coins were minted at Philadelphia every year that Morgans were produced, and for two (possibly three) years at New Orleans, and one year each at Carson City and San Francisco. Prices are moderate to Select Uncirculated, increasing above that to expensive and very expensive as Gem or finer. Issues with higher prices are the 1878 seven tail feathers, reverse of 1879; 1883-O and 1893-CC; the 1895 proof-only pieces; and the 1921 Chapman examples. Cameo and deep cameo versions generally have modest premiums over regular proofs.

Specifications:

Designer: George T. Morgan
Circulation Mintage: high 44,690,000 (1921), low 12,000 (1895, but none are known, possibly all having been melted. Next lowest at 77,000 pieces is the 1893-S).
Proof Mintage: high 1,355 (1880), low 590 (1890. A small number of proofs have been listed from the New Orleans, Carson City, and San Francisco mints, though unconfirmed by official records and considered by some to be exceptional business strikes. The San Francisco pieces were apparently made at the request of Farran Zerbe, President of the American Numismatic Association from 1908 to 1910, and Henry Chapman, a Philadelphia coin dealer in the early 1900s).
Denomintion: $1.00 One Dollar
Diameter: ±38.1 mm, reeded edge
Metal content: 90% silver, 10% copper
Weight: ±26.73 grams
Varieties:Hundreds of varieties are known for this extensively studied series of U.S. coinage. A reference on Morgan varieties was published in 1964, at the end of the earlier period of Treasury Department silver dollar distribution, but interest expanded greatly following the 1971 publication of a comprehensive variety book by Leroy Van Allen and A. George Mallis. The most sought-after VAM varieties (after Van Allen and Mallis) are divided into two groups, the Top-100 and the Hot-50. Of more general interest to the non-specialist are the 1878 seven/eight tail feathers versions; the 1878/1879/1880 reverse varieties; the 1879-CC/CC; 1880/79-O and S overdates; 1882-O/S; 1887/6 O and Philadelphia overdates; 1888-O double die obverse; 1899-O Micro mintmark; 1900 O/CC; 1901 double die reverse; and the 1903-S Micro S mintmark.

Additional Resources :

CoinFacts: www.coinfacts.com
Coin Encyclopedia: www.ngccoin.com
A Buyer’s Guide to Silver Dollars & Trade Dollars of the United States. Q. David Bowers (author), John Dannreuther (editor). Zyrus Press.
A Guide Book of Morgan Silver Dollars. Q. David Bowers. Whitman Publishing.
Comprehensive Catalog and Encyclopedia of Morgan & Peace Dollars. Leroy Van Allen, A. George Mallis. Worldwide Ventures, Inc.
The Top 100 Morgan Dollar Varieties: The VAM Keys. Michael S. Fey, Jeff Oxman. RCI Publishing.
CherryPickers’ Guide to Rare Die Varieties of United States Coins. Bill Fivaz, J.T. Stanton. Whitman Publishing.
The Official Red Book: A Guide Book of United States Coins. R.S Yeoman (author), Kenneth Bressett (editor). Whitman Publishing.
A Guide Book of United States Type Coins. Q. David Bowers. Whitman Publishing.
The Experts Guide to Collecting & Investing in Rare Coins. Q. David Bowers. Whitman Publishing.
The U.S. Mint and Coinage. Don Taxay. Arco Publishing
Walter Breen’s Encyclopedia of U.S. Coins. Walter Breen. Doubleday.

Last Updated : 09/08/2008

Photos used with permission and courtesy of Heritage Auction Galleries

Description:
The last Draped Bust, Heraldic Eagle quarter dollar was minted in 1807, the same year that German immigrant John Reich was hired by the U.S. Mint. Tasked with creating new coinage designs, Reich modified Liberty’s portrait and the reverse eagle, producing designs that appeared on the half dollar and half eagle in 1807, the quarter eagle in 1808, and then the dime in 1809. After a seven-year gap in production, the quarter dollar was minted with these new designs in 1815. Continuing a Mint policy of using the same design on all coins as much as possible, the half dime also received the Draped Bust design, in 1829, but it was never used on the silver dollar, which had not been produced since 1804.

Quarters were not regularly minted in the early 1800s because the demand for the denomination was limited. Spanish two-reales pieces were still a common circulating coin at the time, with the same legal tender value as the quarter, but the reales were lighter weight. The result of this same denomination circulating coinage was inevitable: the Spanish coins were used in commerce but the U.S. coins were saved because they contained more silver. The 1815 quarter mintage happened only because banks had ordered them and not, as far as we know, because of a federal interest in increasing their use (over 20 percent of the 1815 mintage went to one bank, the Planters’ Bank of New Orleans). Production was further compromised by a fire at the Mint in early January, 1816, which halted the mintage of gold and silver coins. Quarters were not produced again until 1818, and except for 1826, yearly thereafter until the end of the type in 1828.

The obverse portrait is of a more fulsome Liberty than the previous Draped Bust style, which led to unfortunate, though unsubstantiated, comments that Reich had modeled Liberty after his “fat mistress.” Liberty is wearing a mobcap (a fashionable woman’s headdress of the period, not a liberty cap as it is sometimes erroneously labeled) with a band displaying LIBERTY. Long curling hair drapes over the forehead, around the ear, across the shoulders, and down the back. A flowing robe covers the bust and shoulder, fixed with a clasp above the shoulder. Thirteen six-point stars surround the portrait, seven to the left and six to the right, just inside a dentilled rim. The date is centered at the bottom.

The reverse displays a left-facing eagle with outstretched, though partially folded, wings and a Union shield across its breast. The left claw clutches three arrows, the right an olive branch. UNITED STATES OF AMERICA encircles inside the dentilled rim around the top two-thirds of the coin, and the denomination of 25 C. is at the bottom, below the eagle. A concentric banner with E PLURIBUS UNUM is located above the eagle’s head, below STATES OF. All coins were minted at Philadelphia; no mint mark appears on the coins. Some 1815 and 1825 dated quarters have an E or L counterstamp above Liberty’s head, marks unmentioned in official records and purpose unknown. Some have speculated that these letters indicate the use of quarters as school prizes which were saved as keepsakes, thus accounting for the high grade of most survivors.

Prices for business strikes are moderate up to XF grades, advancing steadily and becoming very expensive as Gem and finer. A few hundred pieces have been certified for each year that quarters were produced for circulation, though some varieties are represented by only a few pieces. The 1822 25C over 50C variety is expensive in all grades, and the low mintage 1823/2 overdate extremely expensive. A few prooflike business strikes have been certified. A small number of proofs from each year are listed in census/ population reports, which include pieces with a cameo designation. All proofs are expensive to extremely expensive, with the very rare original 1827/3 at the top of the price range, closely followed by the 1827/3 restrikes.

Specifications:

Designer: John Reich
Circulation Mintage: high 361,174 (1818), low 4,000 (1827, possibly dated 1825; only proof strikes are known for the date. Next lowest was 17,800 coins in 1823)
Proof Mintage: high 30-40 (1827, estimated), low 5 (1823 and 1824, estimated. None known for 1815, 1818, and 1819)
Denomintion: $0.25 Twenty-five cents (25/100)
Diameter: ±27 mm, reeded edge
Metal content: 89.24% silver, 10.76% copper
Weight: ±6.74 grams
Varieties:Several are known, most overdates or overpunches, but also including variations such as the 1819 Large and Small 9 varieties, and the 1820 Large and Small O varieties. Other well-known varieties include the 1818/5, 1822 25C over 50C, 1823/2, 1824/2, 1825/2, 1825/3, 1825/4, 1827/3 (proof) and 1828 25C over 50C. All known 1823 and 1824 quarters are overdates. The 1827 restrikes are well known because of the rarity of issues for the year, and were most likely surreptitiously made in the late 1850s, some with rusted dies and some overstruck on older quarters (a piece struck on an 1806 quarter is known). Quarters dated 1815 and 1825 (including 1825 overpunch varieties) are often seen with E and L counterpunches, likely private marks rather than Mint-produced.

Additional Resources :

CoinFacts: www.coinfacts.com
Coin Encyclopedia: www.ngccoin.com
Early United States Quarters 1796-1838. Steve Tompkins.
The Official Red Book: A Guide Book of United States Coins. R.S Yeoman (author), Kenneth Bressett (editor). Whitman Publishing.
A Guide Book of United States Type Coins. Q. David Bowers. Whitman Publishing.
United States Coinage: A Study by Type. Ron Guth and Jeff Garrett. Whitman Publishing.
The Experts Guide to Collecting & Investing in Rare Coins. Q. David Bowers. Whitman Publishing.
The U.S. Mint and Coinage. Don Taxay. Arco Publishing
Walter Breen’s Encyclopedia of U.S. Coins. Walter Breen. Doubleday.

Last Updated : 09/05/2008

Photos used with permission and courtesy of Heritage Auction Galleries

Description:
Robert Scot’s Flowing Hair half dime design, used in 1794 and 1795, was disparaged by some for his portrayals both of Liberty and the reverse eagle. Perhaps responding to that criticism, Mint Director Henry W. DeSaussure announced a goal of improving the designs of all silver coins. Artist Gilbert Stuart (known for his portrait of George Washington and often called the “Father of American Portraiture”) created a sketch of Liberty, modeled after a local resident, that was transferred to dies by John Eckstein. Some have criticized the resultant likeness as not capturing the fullness of Gilbert’s original sketch, but since the whereabouts of that sketch is unknown, such criticism may be presumptuous. The reverse design was also modified. The eagle was reduced in size from the image used on the previous version, though given a more robust appearance, and the encircling wreath was now comprised of two plant types rather than one.

The several obverse changes in the half dime issues for 1797 are categorized by the number of stars around the rim. The first type of this year had fifteen stars, the same as displayed on the 1796 half dime. To signify the addition of Tennessee as the sixteenth state in 1796, the second obverse die for 1797 was modified to include a sixteenth star. Perhaps because the space for additional stars on the obverse was essentially gone, leaving no room for additional stars representing new states that were likely to join the Union, the number of stars was reduced to 13 on the last 1797 issue. Thirteen stars thus represented the union of the original 13 colonies, a symbolism repeated on many subsequent U.S. coin issues.

On the obverse a youthful Liberty faces right, long hair cascading down the back of her neck, with a decorative headband ribbon tied at the back. Shoulders and neckline are loosely draped with rippled cloth. The word LIBERTY is centered at the top inside the border dentils, with the date centered at the bottom. Fifteen six-point stars with thin rays fill the spaces between date and LIBERTY on the 1796 coins and the first 1797 issue, eight stars to the left and seven to the right. The second 1797 variety has 16 stars, nine to the left and seven to the right, and the final 1797 variety displays 13 stars, seven to the left and six to the right. The 1796 LIKERTY variety is missing most (but not all) of the horizontal top and bottom bars of the letter B, giving a first-glance impression of being a letter K.

The reverse displays UNITED STATES OF AMERICA along the edge of the coin inside a dentilled rim. Just inside the legend is an encircling pair of branches, crossed and tied at the bottom but slightly apart at the top. The left branch is laurel, with berries, while the right is a palm branch. In the center a right-facing eagle with partially outstretched wings rests on an ambiguous surface, identified as either clouds or a rock. Unlike the previous Small Eagle type, the eagle’s wings do not intersect the surrounding branches, though the left wing (viewers right) does touch the palm branch. No denomination or mintmark appears on the coins; all were minted in Philadelphia.

Just a few hundred Draped Bust, Small Eagle half dimes have been certified, with census/ population reports listing more of the 1797, 15-star, coins than of the other varieties. Prices are modest (though not inexpensive) at grades of Good to Fine, but climb steeply above that. Coins graded as Mint State and finer are very expensive. The 1797 13-star is the most expensive variety, at prices approximately double that of any of the others. The 1796/5 overdate has a modest premium above the others up to Select Uncirculated, with the price difference increasing above that grade.

Specifications:

Designer: Robert Scot
Circulation Mintage: high 44,527 (1797, all varieties), low 10,230 (1796, all varieties)
Proof Mintage: none
Denomintion: $0.05 Five cents (05/100)
Diameter: ±16.5 mm, reeded edge
Metal content: 89.24% silver, 10.76% copper
Weight: ±1.35 grams
Varieties:Though every issue of the two-year type is distinct, five versions are specifically identified as varieties: the 1796/5 overdate; the 1796 “LIKERTY”, so-called because of a break at the top and bottom horizontal bars of the B, not from the use of the letter K; and 15, 16, and 13 star obverses for the year 1797.

Additional Resources :

CoinFacts: www.coinfacts.com
Coin Encyclopedia: www.ngccoin.com
Federal Half Dimes. Russell J. Logan, John W. McCloskey. John Reich Collectors Society.
The Official Red Book: A Guide Book of United States Coins. R.S Yeoman (author), Kenneth Bressett (editor). Whitman Publishing.
A Guide Book of United States Type Coins. Q. David Bowers. Whitman Publishing.
United States Coinage: A Study by Type. Ron Guth and Jeff Garrett. Whitman Publishing.
The Experts Guide to Collecting & Investing in Rare Coins. Q. David Bowers. Whitman Publishing.
The U.S. Mint and Coinage. Don Taxay. Arco Publishing
Walter Breen’s Encyclopedia of U.S. Coins. Walter Breen. Doubleday.

Last Updated : 09/01/2008

Photos used with permission and courtesy of Heritage Auction Galleries

Description:
This last variation of the Liberty double eagle, often labeled Type 3, was produced in large quantities, particularly during the last decade of the 19th century and in the years leading to the end of the series in 1907. In most years the output from the San Francisco branch mint was greater than the production from any of the other mints, including Philadelphia. The designer of the Liberty Head double eagle, James B. Longacre, had died on January 1, 1869. His successor William Barber, and Barber’s son Charles Barber, made modest changes to the designs, including a change in the denomination listing on the reverse from TWENTY D. to TWENTY DOLLARS, which defines the type, and a stronger angle of the neck truncation on Liberty, which provided additional space for the placement of the date.

The Type 3 series of double eagles coincided with turbulent political and economic times in this country. In 1878 gold coins for the first time circulated at the same value as comparable paper money issues, where before they had traded at a premium (that is, it took more than a dollar’s worth of paper to buy a dollar’s worth of gold, based on face value). Even so, other than in the central western states, gold coins did not widely circulate. People had adapted to using currency for transactions and continued to do so even when silver and gold coins were available.

Declining world-wide demand for silver was contrasted by the U.S. government’s politically constrained purchase of vast amounts of silver for coinage into silver dollars, per the 1878 Bland-Allison Act. This caused an outflow of gold coins to countries where silver was no longer wanted as payment for obligations. The double eagle was the coin of choice for these transactions, and the export of gold coins became so severe that the Treasury nearly ran out of gold (the backing for certain currency) in January, 1895. National bankruptcy was averted by the behind-the-scenes actions of wealthy private citizens, including well-known financier J. Pierpont Morgan, who transferred private gold holdings to the Sub-Treasury in New York. The infusion was sufficient to avert the crisis, and gold stocks were slowly replenished in the following months.

Longacre’s classical left-facing Liberty on the obverse is said to be modeled after an old Hellenistic sculpture, the Crouching Venus. A beaded-edged coronet with the word LIBERTY is placed on her head, and curled locks both drape down the back of the neck and sweep from the front to form rolled curls at the back of her head. Thirteen six-point stars encircle inside a dentilled rim, and the date is centered at the bottom. The designer’s initials, JBL, appear at the bottom edge of the neck truncation as on both previous types. The reverse displays UNITED STATES OF AMERICA around the top two-thirds inside a dentilled rim, and the denomination TWENTY DOLLARS is centered at the bottom. An eagle with outstretched wings is in the center, clutching three arrows in the left claw and a small olive branch in the right, with a shield placed across its breast.

The eagle, head turned to its right, is holding in its beak one of two top extensions of an elaborately curled and parted double scroll or ribbon, which some suggest represents the double eagle denomination. E PLURIBUS is in the center of the ribbon to the left, and UNUM in a similar location on the ribbon to the right. Above the eagle’s head, below STATES OF, thirteen small six-point stars form a slightly flattened oval. Six of the stars are on the blank field and seven overlap the edge of sunburst-like rays that form an arc between the eagle’s wings. Within the oval is the motto IN GOD WE TRUST. Circulation strikes were minted at Philadelphia (all years except 1883, 1884, and 1887), Carson City (1877-1879, 1882-1885, 1889-1893), New Orleans (1879), San Francisco (all years except 1886), and Denver (1906-1907); the CC, O, S, and D mintmarks are located in the narrow space below the eagle, above TWENTY DOLLARS, on the reverse. Proofs were minted every year at Philadelphia, and prooflike pieces from the Denver Mint in 1906 and 1907 are known.

Without Motto Liberty Head double eagles are considered common, and though prices for the lower grades reflect the amount of gold contained in this large coin they advance steeply at low Mint State grades or finer. Key dates are the proof-only issues from Philadelphia in 1883, 1884, and 1887; the 1879-O; 1882, 1885, 1886, and 1891 Philadelphia circulation strikes; many of the Carson City dates, particularly the 1891-CC; and most issues at Select Uncirculated and finer. Prooflike circulation strikes are known. All proofs are expensive, dramatically so as near-Gem and Gem, and are represented in census/ population reports by very few coins except for the last ten years of the series and even then not in quantity. Cameo and Deep Cameo proofs, not unusual for the type, have been certified and have slightly higher prices.

Specifications:

Designer: James B. Longacre, with minor modifications by William Barber and Charles Barber
Circulation Mintage:high 6,256,699 (1904), low 571 (1882; none from Philadelphia in 1883, 1884, and 1887)
Proof Mintage:high 158 (1903), low 20 (1877 and 1878; one Denver 1907 proof, or proof-like piece, has been certified)
Denomintion: $20.00, Twenty dollars, Double Eagle
Diameter: ±34 mm, reeded edge
Metal content: 90% gold, 10% copper
Weight: ±33.436 grams
Varieties:A few minor die varieties have been identified, but a double die 1888 and double date 1896 are the only two currently listed in census/ population reports. A unique 1876 proof prototype of this final Liberty double eagle type, called a transitional pattern in the 2009 Guide Book, is known.

Additional Resources :

CoinFacts: www.coinfacts.com
Coin Encyclopedia: www.ngccoin.com
The Official Red Book: A Guide Book of Double Eagle Gold Coins. Q. David Bowers. Whitman Publishing.
Encyclopedia of U.S. Gold Coins, 1795-1933. Jeff Garrett and Ron Guth. Whitman Publishing.
The Official Red Book: A Guide Book of United States Coins. R.S Yeoman (author), Kenneth Bressett (editor). Whitman Publishing.
A Guide Book of United States Type Coins. Q. David Bowers. Whitman Publishing.
United States Coinage: A Study by Type. Ron Guth and Jeff Garrett. Whitman Publishing.
The Experts Guide to Collecting & Investing in Rare Coins. Q. David Bowers. Whitman Publishing.
The U.S. Mint and Coinage. Don Taxay. Arco Publishing
Walter Breen’s Encyclopedia of U.S. Coins. Walter Breen. Doubleday.

Last Updated : 09/01/2008

Photos used with permission and courtesy of Heritage Auction Galleries

Description:
When the double eagle was proposed one of the arguments in support of the new coin was that a depositor with a large amount of bullion would find the $20 coin a more convenient product than smaller denomination coins. One of the sponsors of the double eagle authorizing legislation, Representative James McKay of North Carolina, noted that the Act of 1837 required the Mint to provide whatever coins a bullion depositor wanted. Certainly, the thought went, a depositor would prefer to have as few coins as possible. However, because some legislators were doubtful that the public would indeed accept this large coin, its authorization was limited to two years. If the denomination proved unpopular, the legislation would not be renewed. But the double eagle did have its supporters. Senator Thomas Benton of Missouri predicted that the $20 coins would be more popular than the gold dollar, which proved to be a correct assessment, and the denomination was produced for eight and a half decades.

Gold twenties were first minted for circulation in 1850. In 1866 the religious motto IN GOD WE TRUST was added to the reverse of the double eagle, producing what is often referred to as the Type 2 double eagle. This resulted in two designs for the same year (1866), a pattern repeated in 1907 when St. Gauden’s design replaced James Longacre’s Liberty Head type. The oval of stars above the eagle on the reverse was expanded to accommodate the motto. Additional changes included modification of the reverse shield, ribbons, and rays, and the lengthening of the eagle’s tail feathers. The last change necessitated the use of smaller mintmarks to fit in the reduced space left between the feathers and the denomination.

Longacre’s classical left-facing Liberty on the obverse is said to be modeled after an old Hellenistic sculpture, the Crouching Venus. A beaded-edged coronet with the word LIBERTY is placed on her head, and curled locks both drape down the back of the neck and sweep from the front to form rolled curls at the back of her head. Thirteen six-point stars encircle inside a dentilled rim, and the date is centered at the bottom. The reverse displays UNITED STATES OF AMERICA around the top two-thirds inside a dentilled rim, and the denomination TWENTY D. is centered at the bottom. An eagle with outstretched wings is in the center, clutching three arrows in the left claw and a small olive branch in the right, with a shield placed across its breast. The shield has ornate curved borders; the sides and top were straight on the Without Motto type.

The eagle, head turned to its right, is holding in its beak one of two top extensions of an elaborately curled and parted double scroll or ribbon, which some suggest represents the double eagle denomination. E PLURIBUS is in the center of the ribbon to the left, and UNUM in a similar location on the ribbon to the right. Above the eagle’s head, below STATES OF, thirteen small six-point stars form a slightly flattened oval. Six of the stars are on the blank field and seven overlap the edge of sunburst-like rays that form an arc between the eagle’s wings. Within the oval is the motto IN GOD WE TRUST. Circulation coins were minted at Philadelphia, Carson City (from 1870 forward), and San Francisco; small CC and S mintmarks are located in the narrow space below the eagle, above TWENTY D., on the reverse. All proofs were minted at Philadelphia.

Without Motto Liberty Head double eagles are considered common, and though prices for the lower grades reflect the amount of gold contained in this large coin they advance steeply at low Mint State grades or finer. CC-Mint issues command higher premiums for nearly all dates, particularly so for 1870 (extremely expensive) through 1873 issues. Prooflike circulation strikes are known. All proofs are expensive, dramatically so as near-Gem and Gem, and are represented in census/ population reports by very few coins. Cameo and Deep Cameo proofs have been certified, and are not unusual for the type.

Specifications:

Designer: James B. Longacre
Circulation Mintage:high 1,709,825 (1873), low 3,789 (1870-CC)
Proof Mintage:high 50 (1867), low 20 (1874 and 1875).
Denomintion: $20.00, Twenty dollars, Double Eagle
Diameter: ±34 mm, reeded edge
Metal content: 90% gold, 10% copper
Weight: ±33.436 grams
Varieties:A few minor die varieties have been identified, but 1873 Open 3 and Close 3 types are the best known. Close 3 circulating coins were produced at all three mints, and by Philadelphia for the proof issue. Open 3 examples are listed separately in census/ population reports only for Philadelphia and San Francisco mint issues.

Additional Resources :

CoinFacts: www.coinfacts.com
Coin Encyclopedia: www.ngccoin.com
The Official Red Book: A Guide Book of Double Eagle Gold Coins. Q. David Bowers. Whitman Publishing.
Encyclopedia of U.S. Gold Coins, 1795-1933. Jeff Garrett and Ron Guth. Whitman Publishing.
The Official Red Book: A Guide Book of United States Coins. R.S Yeoman (author), Kenneth Bressett (editor). Whitman Publishing.
A Guide Book of United States Type Coins. Q. David Bowers. Whitman Publishing.
United States Coinage: A Study by Type. Ron Guth and Jeff Garrett. Whitman Publishing.
The Experts Guide to Collecting & Investing in Rare Coins. Q. David Bowers. Whitman Publishing.
The U.S. Mint and Coinage. Don Taxay. Arco Publishing
Walter Breen’s Encyclopedia of U.S. Coins. Walter Breen. Doubleday.

Last Updated : 08/22/2008

Photos used with permission and courtesy of Heritage Auction Galleries

Description:
By 1840 the Bechtler family of North Carolina had at their private mint produced more than $2.2 million in gold coins, about half of which were dollars. This success put continued pressure on the U.S. government to produce gold dollar coins, but it took the California gold discoveries in the late 1840s to move the idea forward. Great quantities of gold were sent to the Philadelphia Mint for coinage. An initial shipment was coined into quarter eagles, but it soon became apparent that small denomination coins would not keep up with the gold influx. Congressman James McKay, also of North Carolina, modified earlier legislation authorizing the gold dollar to also allow production of a $20 piece, the double eagle, and the statute passed in 1849.

As with many events in early U.S. coinage history the authorization of the $20 coin provided its share of intrigue. The designs for the first double eagle were by James Longacre, the Mint’s Chief Engraver. Opposed by Chief Coiner Franklin Peale and Mint Director Robert Patterson, Longacre produced double eagle patterns and die trials in 1849, none of which were deemed satisfactory. When Longacre learned of efforts by Peale and Patterson to dismiss him, he turned for support to Senator John C. Calhoun, through whose influence he had received his appointment, and the ouster was blocked. The first production coins finally appeared in 1850, only two months before Calhoun died. Only one, or possibly two, 1849-dated double eagles exist, classified either as proofs or patterns. One 1849 twenty is located in the Smithsonian Institution, and though a second was apparently sent to the Treasury Secretary after being minted, the current status of that coin is unknown.

Longacre’s classical left-facing Liberty on the obverse is said to be modeled after an old Hellenistic sculpture, the Crouching Venus. A beaded-edged coronet with the word LIBERTY is placed on her head, and curled locks both drape down the back of the neck and sweep from the front to form rolled curls at the back of her head. Thirteen six-point stars encircle inside a dentilled rim, and the date is centered at the bottom. The reverse displays UNITED STATES OF AMERICA around the top two-thirds inside a dentilled rim, and the denomination TWENTY D. is centered at the bottom. An eagle with outstretched wings is in the center, clutching three arrows in the left claw and a small olive branch in the right, with a shield placed across its breast.

The eagle, head turned to its right, is holding in its beak one of two top extensions of an elaborately curled and parted double scroll or ribbon, which some suggest represents the double eagle denomination. E PLURIBUS is in the center of the ribbon to the left, and UNUM in a similar location on the ribbon to the right. Above the eagle’s head, below STATES OF, thirteen small six-point stars form an oval. Seven of the stars are on the blank field and six overlap sunburst-like rays that form an arc between the eagle’s wings. Circulation coins were minted at Philadelphia, New Orleans and San Francisco; O and S mintmarks are located in the narrow space below the eagle, above TWENTY D., on the reverse. All proofs were minted at Philadelphia.

Without Motto Liberty Head double eagles are considered common, and though prices for the lower grades reflect the amount of gold contained in this large coin they advance steeply as low Mint State or finer coins. O-Mint issues command higher premiums for nearly all dates, but the 1854-O and 1856-O are extremely expensive. Other coins with premium prices include the Large Date 1854 variety and the 1861-S Paquet modified reverse variety. An 1861 Paquet reverse from the Philadelphia Mint is also known, but is extremely expensive and nearly unique with only two specimens known. Coins recovered from several shipwrecks, including the Republic, Central America, and Brother Jonathan have added to the Mint State populations, but often carry a modest premium because of the history associated with those pieces. Prooflike circulation strikes are known. All proofs are expensive, dramatically so as near-Gem and Gem, and are represented in census/ population reports by very few coins. Cameo and Deep Cameo proofs have been certified.

Specifications:

Designer: James B. Longacre
Circulation Mintage:high 2,976,453 (1861), low 2,250 (1856-O)
Proof Mintage: high 80 (1859), low 5 (1857, estimated; one or two proofs/ patterns known for 1849, unknown or unconfirmed from 1850 through 1856).
Denomintion: $20.00, Twenty dollars, Double Eagle
Diameter: ±34 mm, reeded edge
Metal content: 90% gold, 10% copper
Weight: ±33.436 grams
Varieties:A few dozen die varieties are known, most representing minor die changes and overpunches. Best known are the 1853/2 overdate; the 1854 Small Date and 1854 Large Date; 1852, 1854, and 1859-S double die varieties; an 1857-S inverted S variety; and the 1861-S Paquet and extremely rare 1861 Philadelphia Paquet reverses. The eponymous Paquet reverses were made by Assistant Engraver Anthony Paquet and have a slightly modified eagle, taller reverse lettering, and a narrower border.

Additional Resources :

CoinFacts: www.coinfacts.com
Coin Encyclopedia: www.ngccoin.com
The Official Red Book: A Guide Book of Double Eagle Gold Coins. Q. David Bowers. Whitman Publishing.
Encyclopedia of U.S. Gold Coins, 1795-1933. Jeff Garrett and Ron Guth. Whitman Publishing.
The Official Red Book: A Guide Book of United States Coins. R.S Yeoman (author), Kenneth Bressett (editor). Whitman Publishing.
A Guide Book of United States Type Coins. Q. David Bowers. Whitman Publishing.
United States Coinage: A Study by Type. Ron Guth and Jeff Garrett. Whitman Publishing.
The Experts Guide to Collecting & Investing in Rare Coins. Q. David Bowers. Whitman Publishing.
The U.S. Mint and Coinage. Don Taxay. Arco Publishing
Walter Breen’s Encyclopedia of U.S. Coins. Walter Breen. Doubleday.

Last Updated : 08/22/2008