the 1822 Dime is the key what are some of the other key coins

bestday

Interesting Thread around about scoring a supposed 1822 rare dime.. thought are what some of the other key US coins in all grades?

DIMEMAN

1809, 1811 and a bunch of the JR # varieties.

Also the 1824/2.

BustHalfBrian

That would be a long list! Isn't the 1829 Curl 2 another key in the Capped dime series? I generally stick to the halves.

DIMEMAN

Originally posted by: BustHalfBrian
That would be a long list! Isn't the 1829 Curl 2 another key in the Capped dime series? I generally stick to the halves.

Yes, that is another one.

yosclimber

The key coins are not hard to spot - just open the Red Book and look for the
highest price coin in the lowest grade available for a series.
The main complication is that people will redefine a series to exclude certain
scarce coins, such as proof-only issues.
Or a series can be defined at different levels of varieties recognized.
Some of the standard keys in common series:
1877 Indian Cent
1909-S VDB Lincoln Cent
1950-D Jefferson Nickel
1916-D Mercury Dime

BryceM

In some series the key dates are pretty hard to define. Take Peace dollars. Conventional wisdom (and many websites) list the 1921, 1928, and 1934-S as key dates. This small series has only 24 coins in the full business-strike date/mintmark set. A few (20?) 1921 proofs exist, and, in addition, there are a handful of production oddities like medium-relief proofs, 1922 high-relief coins and so forth that fetch enormous prices when they come out of the woodwork. Are these the key dates?



In the regular business-strike issues, irrespective of grade, the 1928 is probably considered the rarest, with only 360,000 minted. In actuality, there are actually quite a few around, with an estimated 40,000 extant pieces, and at least several hundred of gem quality. Virtually every B&M coin shop in the country has at least one or two. Compare that to the 1882 Seated half-dollar. As with most 1880s half-dollars, the mintage figures are quite minuscule at 4400 coins, with perhaps 25 extant gems.



Back to Peace dollars, the 1934-S is widely considered the key date in uncirculated grades, as even an MS60 example will set you back $1500 or so. However, if you are trying to build a VERY nice set, the 1934-S is just another coin, with 9 of the 24 issues being more scarce at the MS66 grade. Is it the key date? The 1925-S is one of the more common issues at MS63, but is a condition rarity at MS65 (along with the 28-S). Only recently was a single 25-S example graded at MS66 by NGC. So is the 1925-S the key date?



I haven't even mentioned the 1921, 1923-S, 1924-S, 1927-S. The 1921 is of particular importance, being the only issue struck exclusively in high relief with only 1,000,000 examples minted. As such, its demand is higher than for most other Peace issues. Is it the key date? The 1923-S is extremely common at MS63, but extremely uncommon at MS65. Odd huh?



To add to all the confusion, price trends don't always correspond to mintage figures or current availability. Take the 1924-S and 1927-D issues. Next to the 1934-S, these are the most rare in uncirculated grades. Prices don't reflect that though, with MS63 coins trading at $575 and $430. Compare that to the 1921 at $430, the 1928 at $750, and the 34-S at $4200. The 1928 is commonly perceived as more scarce, due to its low mintage, but try shopping around for a nice 24-S or 27-D. They're out there, but it is many times easier (but more expensive) to find a 1928 in the same condition.



Dealer promotion, market hype, perceived half-truths, and anecdotal stories cause all sorts of fluctuations in price and demand. All of this, of course, is what makes it fun.



..... and that's just Peace dollars!

oih82w8

...don't forget about varieties!



I know, varieties are not keys...I just like throwing that out there every once in a while.

messydesk

Originally posted by: yosclimber

The key coins are not hard to spot - just open the Red Book and look for the

highest price coin in the lowest grade available for a series.

The main complication is that people will redefine a series to exclude certain

scarce coins, such as proof-only issues.

Or a series can be defined at different levels of varieties recognized.

Some of the standard keys in common series:

1877 Indian Cent

1909-S VDB Lincoln Cent

1950-D Jefferson Nickel

1916-D Mercury Dime

Yes, and no. If you define key dates solely by the price you have to pay for a typical sample as compared to the rest of the series, then I agree that those are the keys. They are by no means the most difficult to actually find. And when you consider condition rarity, others may become the keys as defined by purely by cost. A 25-S cent for a Whitman blue folder might cost you a buck, but in 64RD and higher is more expensive than an 09-S VDB.

keyman64

When it comes to the 1916-D Mercury Dime, it is NOT the key to the series when you get into Mint State or Mint State Full Bands! Way too many people have been raised with blinders on while staring at the mintage figures in the Red Book. People just end up parroting so many of the misinformed professionals that have not done the true analysis/research. It really isn't even close!



Ugh! /rant

bestday

Originally posted by: keyman64


When it comes to the 1916-D Mercury Dime, it is NOT the key to the series when you get into Mint State or Mint State Full Bands! Way too many people have been raised with blinders on while staring at the mintage figures in the Red Book. People just end up parroting so many of the misinformed professionals that have not done the true analysis/research. It really isn't even close!

Ugh! /rant

In the Morgans .. 1889cc ?

keyman64

Morgans have never been my specialty so I could of course guess, like everyone else guesses about the Mercury Dimes, but I would hate to come across as "misinformed." There also might be different keys for PL, DMPL, Mint State, Circs,, Proof, across the board etc.



Back to the Merc, it is the 1926-S in Mint State or Mint State Full Bands. In circulated grades it is the 1916-D. And on a pure demand side, due to all of the misinformed people out there that have their blinders on and only stare at the mintage figures....the prices for the 1926-S will likely never reach the realm of the 1916-D unless every single author, writer, columnist, "professional", dealer, auction house etc starts stating the FACTS for a few decades. So, the 1926-S in say a nice MS63-65 FB grade range are real bargains if you can find them.

TwoSides2aCoin

Originally posted by: yosclimber
The key coins are not hard to spot - just open the Red Book and look for the
highest price coin in the lowest grade available for a series.
The main complication is that people will redefine a series to exclude certain
scarce coins, such as proof-only issues.
Or a series can be defined at different levels of varieties recognized.
Some of the standard keys in common series:
1877 Indian Cent
1909-S VDB Lincoln Cent
1950-D Jefferson Nickel
1916-D Mercury Dime

Ah, the Cliffnotes for the Red Book. Talk about giving away the keys to reading it