What is the rarest US regular issue coin?
291fifth
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Forget about varieties, die marriages, proofs, patterns etc.
What is the rarest regular issue, mint state US coin by date and mint.
Just how rare is it?
What is the rarest regular issue, mint state US coin by date and mint.
Just how rare is it?
All glory is fleeting.
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1870-S half dime
1870-S $3 gold
1849 $20 Gold
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<< <i>Are you including branch mint proofs?
'13 V-Nick has to be up there. >>
The 1913 Liberty Nickel is NOT a regular issue US coin.
My take on this is that it should be a coin that was issued for general circulation with no gimmicks or specific government melt orders that got to be rare because few were made and most of those were worn out or melted by private concerns. The 1802 half dime would fall into that category, but 35 or so estimated survivors, it's far from the rarest.
My candidate would be the 1822 $5 gold piece. With a mintage of 17,796 minted, only three are known today. Not all of the 17,796 may have been dated 1822 because of the way the mint used dies in those days, but the mint was at least in the hundreds if not thousands. The coin was issued without any fanfare. Most of them were melted, probably in Europe when a lot of U.S. $5 gold coins ended up on those days because of their excessive gold content. All three of the survivors grade in VF to EF area.
Only 3 known. 2 are in the Smithsonian. 1 in Private Hands.
Edit: Dang it! Bill beat me to it of course.
Not really looking for much these days but if I were, it might be a toner.
<< <i>there are multiple examples of unique coins
1870-S half dime
1870-S $3 gold
1849 $20 Gold >>
I don't think that any of these coins qualify as "regular issues." The 1870-S half dime and Three Dollar Gold were special issues that were supposed to have gone into the cornerstone of the San Francisco mint building. They are either stolen, or these were specially made duplicates. The 1849 Twenty Dollar Gold piece was a pattern coin, not a regular issue. It was never released for general circulation.
One coin that I can think of is the 1849-O Seated Liberty Quarter.
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1854-S $5 is also a contender.
The 1974 and 1974-D cents in aluminum may also qualify.
Doggedly collecting coins of the Central American Republic.
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<< <i>1894-S Dime? >>
That was a special striking that was never issued to the general public. It doesn't count.
<< <i>I have always had doubts about the 1822 $5 gold and suspect it may have actually been a special striking with most of the reported mintage actually bearing another date. Three surviving examples is just too small for a regular issue US coin. >>
And what evidence do you have to support that? There were virtually no coin collectors in The United States in 1822. All of the coins are in circulated condition, which indicates that collectors did not receive them from the start directly from the mint. The U.S. Mint cabinet piece was plucked out some gold that was headed for the melting pot by Adam Eckfeldt. The Eliasberg piece can be traced by to Joseph Mickley, who was an early coin collector, but why would it be circulated if he got it directly from the mint? The third example was bought in 1884 in a lot of "old tenor gold." I don't see any evidence from the three known pieces to support your theory.
We do know that the U.S. mint in the 1820s and before was little more than a smelting operation for merchants who brought gold into be coined into U.S. gold pieces. The mint refined the gold to the legal standard and turned in to coins. Then most U.S. gold pieces, especially the $5 gold pieces, were shipped to Europe when most were melted.
<< <i>
<< <i>I have always had doubts about the 1822 $5 gold and suspect it may have actually been a special striking with most of the reported mintage actually bearing another date. Three surviving examples is just too small for a regular issue US coin. >>
And what evidence do you have to support that? There were virtually no coin collectors in The United States in 1822. All of the coins are in circulated condition, which indicates that collectors did not receive them from the start directly from the mint. The U.S. Mint cabinet piece was plucked out some gold that was headed for the melting pot by Adam Eckfeldt. The Eliasberg piece can be traced by to Joseph Mickley, who was an early coin collector, but why would it be ciruclated if he got it directly from the mint? The third example was bought in 1884 in a lot of "old tenor gold." I don't see any evidence from the three known pieces to support your theory.
We do know that the U.S. mint in the 1820s and before was little more than a smelting operation for merchants who brought gold into be coined into U.S. gold pieces. The mint refined the gold to the legal standard and turned in to coins. Then most U.S. $5 gold pieces, especially the $5 gold pieces, were shipped to Europe when most were melted. >>
Strictly gut feeling. There were some collectors in that early era so at least a few dozen should survive of any regular issue US coin. The fact that there are only three surviving examples suggests to me that they were made to order for some early collectors with connections at the mint. We will probably never know just what went on.
Yes, it is possible that nearly the entire mintage could have been melted. Think of the 1895 Morgan Dollar (except for the proofs).
We'll use our hands and hearts and if we must we'll use our heads.
I think that if the 1873-CC No Arrows dime is not a regular issue, then the rarest regular issue coins are the 1822 half eagle, with 3 known, and the 1853-O No Arrows half dollar, with 4 known. I think it is clear that both of those coins are regular issues.
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<< <i>1822 $5
Only 3 known. 2 are in the Smithsonian. 1 in Private Hands.
Edit: Dang it! Bill beat me to it of course.
^ This.
<< <i>
<< <i>1822 $5
Only 3 known. 2 are in the Smithsonian. 1 in Private Hands.
Edit: Dang it! Bill beat me to it of course.
^ This. >>
+1
And if one means, by "rarest" the availability to collectors as a subset of the above, there is just the one. If two or more billionaires "must have an example", there's only one 1822 $5 to bid on.
There are numerous answers tied for first place, if one counts die varieties, as there are several that are unique or nearly so.
edited to add: there may be undiscovered 1822 half eagles in Europe or here in the US, or elsewhere. Wow, would that ever be big news!
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Eric
Worry is the interest you pay on a debt you may not owe.
"Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value---zero."----Voltaire
"Everything you say should be true, but not everything true should be said."----Voltaire
<< <i>Supposedly the unique 1870-S half dime was found in a dealer's junk box. You can't get rarer than unique. >>
Is that a regular issue?
Liberty: Parent of Science & Industry
<< <i>
<< <i>Supposedly the unique 1870-S half dime was found in a dealer's junk box. You can't get rarer than unique. >>
Is that a regular issue? >>
I would say no. Not in the Mint Report. Presumably struck for the cornerstone ceremony.
"Everything is on its way to somewhere. Everything." - George Malley, Phenomenon
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<< <i>1886 Seated Liberty quarter, followed by 1913-S Barber quarter. >>
There's got to be >150 of the 1886 in business strike condition including a few dozen circulated pieces. I can think of 20 other seated quarters by date that would beat the 1886 (72-s, 71s, 70-cc, 71-cc, 60-s, etc.).
The 1901-s and 1913-s Barber quarters would come in essentially last place among ALL the S mint seated quarters with the exception of maybe the the 74-s, 75-s, 76-s, 77-s, 88-s, 91-s. I'm only sure that 2 of those are
probably more common than those two S mint Barbers.
One could make an argument that the 1853-0 NA half (and 1873-cc NA 10c/25c) are varieties. After all, the 1853-0 half is readily available with arrows and rays.
1. 1802 half dime
2. in MS-- 1799 large cent
<< <i>I agree that the 1822 half eagle is the best answer to the question as written, if one means regular issue by date/mm. The way they were found suggests to me the opposite of any "struck for VIPs" theory.
And if one means, by "rarest" the availability to collectors as a subset of the above, there is just the one. If two or more billionaires "must have an example", there's only one 1822 $5 to bid on.
There are numerous answers tied for first place, if one counts die varieties, as there are several that are unique or nearly so.
edited to add: there may be undiscovered 1822 half eagles in Europe or here in the US, or elsewhere. Wow, would that ever be big news! >>
Agree, such a discovery would be "big news." Any thoughts though as to whether we might see 1822 $5 coins surface (pun intended) as Shipwreck coins? After all to get to Europe in the 1800's those coins had to have crossed over in ships.
<< <i>
<< <i>I agree that the 1822 half eagle is the best answer to the question as written, if one means regular issue by date/mm. The way they were found suggests to me the opposite of any "struck for VIPs" theory.
And if one means, by "rarest" the availability to collectors as a subset of the above, there is just the one. If two or more billionaires "must have an example", there's only one 1822 $5 to bid on.
There are numerous answers tied for first place, if one counts die varieties, as there are several that are unique or nearly so.
edited to add: there may be undiscovered 1822 half eagles in Europe or here in the US, or elsewhere. Wow, would that ever be big news! >>
Agree, such a discovery would be "big news." Any thoughts though as to whether we might see 1822 $5 coins surface (pun intended) as Shipwreck coins? After all to get to Europe in the 1800's those coins had to have crossed over in ships. >>
I have never been aware of any shipwrecks that involved the loss of a large shipment of early U.S. gold coins like the SS Central America tragedy. Not all coins have been involved with shipwreck recoveries in a big way. For example there has never a major salvage operation that had yielded large quantities of Type II Twenty Dollar Gold Pieces. For that reason that design is very rare in any Mint State grades above MS-63
1854-s half eagle 268 minted 3 known
70-S half dime unique
73-cc no arrows dime unique
73-s Seated $1 est. 300 minted none known
1895 $1 business strike 5,000 minted none known
1964-D $1 more than 300,000 minted none known
CG
<< <i>1822 half eagle 17,796 minted, 3 known
1854-s half eagle 268 minted 3 known
70-S half dime unique
73-cc no arrows dime unique
73-s Seated $1 est. 300 minted none known
1895 $1 business strike 5,000 minted none known
1964-D $1 more than 300,000 minted none known
CG >>
I'd include the 1870-s quarter in that list since all the other denominations are known to exist for 1870-s seated silver. Rumor has it they are in the "lost" cornerstone of the San Francisco mint....or were. If the half dime was able to pop up there's a reasonable chance that someday the quarter comes to light. If you owned a "unique" 1870-s quarter would you bring it to light? Or bide your time? Is there really any advantage to letting the world know you have it if you have no intention of selling it? At least one of these was manufactured and buried in the orig SF mint. If a 73-s seated dollar is on the table so should the 73-s NA half. Either, both, or none could exist.