Toned peace Dollars
In the November 2025 “Numismatist”
In an article “ Morgan vs Peace Dollars” page 73
By Mitch Sanders. He discusses reasons why there are few toned peace dollars.
Over my 50 years of collecting i have not seen many that i thought were originally toned ,but had been AT’d.
Any thoughts out there? This has been a controversial subject over time.
Comments
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Generally, the vibrant toning seen on Morgans is not present on Peace Dollars. I've only seen one that had really nice rainbow coloring to it.
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I think it’s inaccurate to say that there are few toned Peace dollars. Edited: There are, in fact, a very large number of toned ones, but only a tiny minority which are colorful and attractive.
Mark Feld* of Heritage Auctions*Unless otherwise noted, my posts here represent my personal opinions.
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I honestly dont think the surfaces are right for a peace dollar to develop nice color. Morgans from DMPL to business strikes have smooth surfaces. Peace dollars have really nice lustrous fields but they are not smooth like Morgans. I very much like the surfaces of Peace dollars and the luster is amazing.
This is what I think anyway.Student of numismatics and collector of Morgan dollars
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Cool thread idea. They’re out there but they sure are tough. You guys probably saw the 22s in a PC 63 holder (no CAC) that fetched over $1000 last week in the HA Toned US coin auction.
This is pretty much the only details coin I own. I took one shot at grading it with our hosts, got the QC grade I was expecting, then cracked it and put it back in the Dansco from whence it came.
Here’s my favorite toned Peace Dollar. Ex @lasvegasteddy. On its way to CAC now. MS 65
And here’s one that is stickered. Not a “monster” by any means but about as nicely toned an example as one can expect to find with CAC approval. MS 63 (CAC).
I’ll be very interested to read others’ opinions on why so few nicely toned Peace Dollars ever seem to be available.
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Not sure why there are so few around, but I have collected a couple of examples for the novelty of them!
65+ CAC
66
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@Floridafacelifter 42603985 certificate number isn't coming up. At least not when I tried.
Student of numismatics and collector of Morgan dollars
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@Morgan13 said:
@Floridafacelifter 42603985 certificate number isn't coming up. At least not when I triedThe holder was cracked so it’s in the process of a resubmission and may get a new cert #- you know how long that can take
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I think I read that the acid baths used for Peace $ planchets were much more acidic then those used for Morgans and prevented the silver reaction with sulfur. Also they did not sit in the canvas bags for decades allowing the sulfur to react with the coin surface.
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@Floridafacelifter said:
Not sure why there are so few around, but I have collected a couple of examples for the novelty of them!65+ CAC
66Those are beauties!
Mark Feld* of Heritage Auctions*Unless otherwise noted, my posts here represent my personal opinions.
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It may also be a function of how they were not stored. I remember reading that many Morgans toned the way they did by virtue of the bags they were stored in, which perhaps was not the case for Peace dollars. Peace dollars predated mint sets. Dollar Coins may not have been heavily collected/stored in toning conducive manners around the time they were minted.
I had to look a good period of time to find one for my type set. I lucked out following one of my clichés, to stike while the iron is hot when there is a known set that comes for sale. In this case, great collections had a set, dubbed the “gene Chow collection of toned peace dollars” set, that had a good number of nicely toned pieces. I acquired my piece from that auction. I put in strong bids on two pieces that I could realistically afford, figuring if I won both , one could easily be sold. In the end I want just this one and I am pretty certain it is a forever coin.
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A few of my Peace toners. They are out there, but uncommonly rainbow toned. Usually they come in a gunmetal or orange hue. The premium on toned Peace dollars is also muted, when compared to toned Morgans, especially the rainbows & rim-toned specimens.
Always looking for attractive rim toned Morgan and Peace dollars in PCGS or (older) ANA/ANACS holders!
"Bongo hurtles along the rain soaked highway of life on underinflated bald retread tires."
~Wayne8 -
And just to add another thought, I actually prefer the challenge of finding toned Peace dollars over trying to find nicely toned Morgans tbh. Less dreck to wade through…
Always looking for attractive rim toned Morgan and Peace dollars in PCGS or (older) ANA/ANACS holders!
"Bongo hurtles along the rain soaked highway of life on underinflated bald retread tires."
~Wayne1 -
I purchased this toned 1926-S Peace dollar 15-20 years ago at a local shop. It was in a Paramount holder (black insert).
It has booming luster under the multi colored toning. It was graded MS64 by our host. It looks better in hand than it does in the TrueView photo (the colors and the luster are more vibrant in hand).
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I like them like this actually, this is how they normally tone
PCGS gave this toned Peace Dollar a details grade saying it was cleaned for some reason
Mr_Spud
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I know there are some but they arent plentiful.
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Some great coins above. This one has a little bit of tone,
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Interesting pics. The 1923 PCGS cac 63 (top) of thread looks nice.
Investor0 -
This one got a details grade, but not because of the toning.
Trade $'s5 -
As long as we’re talking toned Peace dollars……..
Is it just me, or are there more nicely toned 1923 Ps out there than any other date in the Peace dollar series?
This is something I feel like I’ve definitely noticed over the years, but could be one of those things that’s just in my own head. Wondering if anyone else has noticed the same thing.
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@MEJ7070 said:
As long as we’re talking toned Peace dollars……..Is it just me, or are there more nicely toned 1923 Ps out there than any other date in the Peace dollar series?
This is something I feel like I’ve definitely noticed over the years, but could be one of those things that’s just in my own head. Wondering if anyone else has noticed the same thing.
You could be right. The 23P had the 2nd highest mintage, 30MM+, and looking at other posts above, looks like the 22P has some nice toners, and they were the highest mintage at 50MM+. Together these 2 dates account for > 40% of the total Peace $'s minted. Maybe with so many minted, some original bags might have escaped release into public hands upon issuance and enjoyed a long time being exposed to the Mint bag sulfur content.
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Here’s a 1921 I liked. I sold it a while back:
Here’s a 1921 I liked even more. I kept it.
It lives in a PCGS MS66 CAC holder.
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They’re definitely way tougher to find nice than Morgans. I’ve got two… one a monster and the other just really nice, especially given it’s a high relief.
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Not an Unc, but an attractive 1928S
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In grades ranging from VF to MS66, all with beans.
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Only one I have.
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These are my two favorites, just love a golden toned 1921, and I’m a sucker for attractive rim toning.
Newbie collector of type and circulated Peace dollars, photographer of places and animals, player of instruments and builder of amplifiers, espresso industry professional, and a person distracted by shiny objects.
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@Morgan13 said:
I honestly dont think the surfaces are right for a peace dollar to develop nice color. Morgans from DMPL to business strikes have smooth surfaces. Peace dollars have really nice lustrous fields but they are not smooth like Morgans. I very much like the surfaces of Peace dollars and the luster is amazing.
This is what I think anyway.The surface texture of the metal definitely has an effect on how the sulfides build up and cause thin film interference. The die prep, general relief of the design, prestrike treatment of planchets, striking pressure, etc. are all factors that come into play.
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@airplanenut said:
They’re definitely way tougher to find nice than Morgans. I’ve got two… one a monster and the other just really nice, especially given it’s a high relief.I could stare at that '21 for hours
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In the early 1970s I asked why there weren't any colorfully toned Peace dollars at the shows as compared to Morgans. The old dealer I asked said it was because of the baths the planchets for the Peace dollar received. I must agree with coastaljerseyguy when he said:
I think I read that the acid baths used for Peace $ planchets were much more acidic then those used for Morgans and prevented the silver reaction with sulfur. Also they did not sit in the canvas bags for decades allowing the sulfur to react with the coin surface.
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As a ballpark number what kind of premium would you attach to a toned Peace $?
Investor0 -
This one has purple tones that match that part of the label. Not sure if that caused it. Successfully crossed to PC.
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I will always regret selling this wildly toned AU50 1922-D Peace $1 with CAC approval.
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@psuman08 said:
Not an Unc, but an attractive 1928SThat color looks really dubious to me.
This one came out of one of those old felted cardboard holders that was part of some bank promotion in the early 60's. I bought it raw at a show in NH about 20 years ago for $15.
mirabela3 -
My NEWP
Yorkshireman,Obsessed collector of round, metallic pieces of history.Hunting for Latin American colonial portraits plus cool US & British coins.14 -
Newp… older ANACS holder
Always looking for attractive rim toned Morgan and Peace dollars in PCGS or (older) ANA/ANACS holders!
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I regret selling this coin so much, I miss it everyday
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@Yorkshireman said:
My NEWPThat is a gorgeous ‘21. Really sweet, congrats.
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Chris1 -
Don’t any have toned Peace dollars. Am trying study how they priced. My major investor clients prefer brilliant super lustrous, PQ material, MS64 or higher.
With all the news about AT coins here - staying away from the toner pond.
Investor0 -
While I don’t personally collect silver dollars, if I see a nicely toned Peace while at a coin show, I’ll try and pick it up, and flip it on GC or eBay. They seem to have a real following. Lots of folks chasing them.
Dave
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Hello folks. Been quite a while since I posted. Haven't purchased a coin, or even looked at any, since April but I have been thinking about looking again.
Just dropped in and saw this thread. Went to grab pics to post and realized that I had none on this new computer.
That sent me to the camera which I haven' used lately either. Then I figured that I might as well edit them.
An hour later here I am.
Beats house cleaning though.
I used to purchase toned Peace dollars whenever I ran across them. Passed on some that I should have bought and sold some that I should have kept.
I still have a few. I picked different dates for this thread.One interesting note, I have owned and seen several 1928's with toning like the one I posted.
@Goldbully Your 22 was always a favorite of mine. I wish that I had known it was for sale.
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I've been inactive for some time in the hobby but good to see peace toners still have a little following. I sold most of my collection but kept my 30 or so toned peace dollars. Here's 1 of my toned 21s
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I have yet to see a toned peace that I find attractive. Owned many toned morgans.
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24 NGC fatty 64
2
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