1863 “No Motto” Liberty Seated Dollar
1866-1873 Liberty Seated dollar with motto “In God We Trust”
Coin press No. 1 as it looks today, first came to the Carson City Mint in 1870. It returned to the building, now the Nevada State Museum, in 1958 after the state bought it for $225 from the federal government.
Liberty Seated Silver Dollar Public Education
(1840-1873)
Liberty seated dollars were minted from 1840 to 1873. From 1840 to 1866, the motto “In God We Trust” was omitted from the reverse. From 1866 to 1973, the motto was added to the reverse in the space above the Eagle. They were designed by Christian Golbrecht, designer of the Golbrecht silver dollars, and contained 0.7734 oz of silver and having a weight of 26.73 grams.
The dates, mintmarks and populations are given by the NGC grading service at Seated Liberty Dollars (1840-1873) | Coin Census Population Report | NGC, while retail prices are given at NGC at Seated Liberty Dollars (1840-1873) | Price Guide & Values | NGC (courtesy of NGCcoin.com).
Similarly, The dates, mintmarks and populations are given by the PCGS grading service at Liberty Seated Dollar - PCGS Population Report while retail prices are given at PCGS at Liberty Seated Dollar (1836-1873) Values - PCGS Price Guide (courtesy of PCGS.com)
Prohibitively rare dates include the 1870-S with only a few examples known and the 1873-S with a reported 700 examples struck, but all melted before being released. No examples are currently known. An 1870-S silver dollar sold in 2003 for more than $1 million dollars. Two examples of the 1866 “No Motto” silver dollar are known and thought to be pattern coins. One sold for more than $1 million dollars in 2021.
Rare dates include the 1851 and 1852 originals and restrikes with a mintage of 1300 and 1100 pieces, respectively. Also desirable are the coins struck with a CC mint mark (Carson City mint), with the rarest dates being 1871-CC and 1873-CC with mintages of 1376 and 2300, respectively.
The 1846-P and 1870-CC silver dollars are known to be struck with rotated dies, which is rarer than a normally struck coin turn.
Proof Liberty Seated dollars are rare, with early dates commanding prices in excess of $100,000. Later date proofs are valued at $2500 in Proof-60 and much more in higher proof grades.
Collecting Seated Dollars
Seated dollars are normally collected by type, perhaps by the “no motto”, and “motto” Types, but some collectors are pursuing a date and mintmark set. The set, with several stoppers mentioned early, makes this a very challenging and costly endeavor, which is only possible by those with the means to afford it. Collecting proofs by type or by a date set is far more challenging when including dates prior to 1858; beyond that, the price of proofs becomes more affordable.
Certification and authentication by a reputable grading service or consultation with a reputable and knowledgeable dealer or numismatic specialist is highly recommended, especially for coins valued in the $300 range and higher.
A Register of Liberty Seated Dollar Varieties by Dick Osburn and Brian Cushing is given at Register of Liberty Seated Dollar Varieties