Commemorative Silver Dollars

1900; 1982-Date

The Lafayette silver dollar was the first minted silver dollar to show the portrait of George Washington on the obverse. He is accompanied by the portrait of the Marquis De Lafayette. General Lafayette is portrayed sitting valiantly on a horse on the reverse. This coin originally sold for $2 at the Lafayette Memorial Commission in 1900.

The Layfayette dollar is valuable in original circulated condition and especially so in mint state. It should never be cleaned. Having an original storage case would add even more value. Certification is highly recommended.

Five different Lafayette dollar die pairs are known and have been cataloged by Frank DuVall. The numbering system simply uses a number for the obverse and a letter for the reverse. All reverse dies have unique branches at the base of the statue that seem to have been hand engraved. As no reverse was used with multiple obverses, the branch makes for a one-and-done diagnostic. Additional interesting diagnostics are shown on the individual pages. There are plenty of repunched letters on both sides of the coins, as the legends were not part of the hub. DuVall 1B and 2C comprise the vast majority of the population, while DuVall 4E, first discovered in 1988, is by far the rarest. Of the 50,000 minted, 14,000 were never distributed. In 1945, they were converted to bullion by the Treasury. It's likely that most of the DuVall 4E coins were among these. (Ref: VAMworld.com)