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1939 S United States "Mercury Dime" Silver 10 Cents

Obverse

Reverse

Type Details

Country:  United States 
Period:  Republic 
Face value:  10 Cents 
Dates:  From 1916 to 1945 
Purpose:  Circulation 
 
Obverse:  Winged-capped Liberty 
Legend:  LIBERTY IN GOD WE TRUST 
 
Reverse:  Fasces 
Legend:  UNITED·STATES·OF·AMERICA E·PLURIBUS UNUM ONE DIME 
 
Edge:  Reeded 
 
Designer(s) / Engraver(s): 
  Adolph A. Weinman 
 
Catalogue:  KM# 140 

Currency

Unit:  United States Dollar 
System:  Decimal 
 
Fractions:  3 Cents = Trime
5 Cents = Nickel
10 Cents = Dime
25 Cents = Quarter
50 Cents = Half Dollar
100 Cents = 1 Dollar

Gold
2.50 Dollars = Quarter Eagle
4 Dollars = Stella
5  Dollars = Half Eagle
10 Dollars = Eagle
20 Dollars = Double Eagle
 
Mint Marks: 
C - Charlotte, North Carolina, United States
CC - Carson City, Nevada, United States
D - Dahlonega, Georgia, United States (1838-1861)
D - Denver, Colorado, United States (1906-)
O - New Orleans, Luisiana, United States
P - Philadelphia, Pensilvania, United States
S - San Francisco, California, United States
W - West Point, New York, United States

Grades & Prices Available

NONE AVAILABLE
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Issue

Year: 
1939 S 
Mint:  San Francisco 
Mintage:  10,540,000 
Scarcity: 
 
Valuation: 

Specifications

Total Weight:  2.5000g (0.08 Oz)  
Composition:  Silver 
Fineness:  0.9000 
Silver Content:  2.25g (0.07 Oz)  
Silver Value:  $2.28 
Alignment: 
Coin 
Diameter:  17.90mm 

Description

Although most commonly referred to as the "Mercury" dime, the coin does not depict the Roman messenger god. The obverse figure is a depiction of the mythological goddess Liberty wearing a Phrygian cap, a classic symbol of liberty and freedom, with its wings intended to symbolize freedom of thought. Designed by noted sculptor Adolph A. Weinman, the Winged Liberty Head dime is considered by many to be one of the most beautiful U.S. coin designs ever produced. The composition (90 percent silver, 10 percent copper) and diameter (17.9 millimeters) of the "Mercury" dime was unchanged from the Barber dime.

Weinman (who had studied under Augustus Saint-Gaudens) won a 1915 competition against two other artists for the design job, and is thought to have modeled his version of Liberty on Elsie Kachel Stevens, wife of noted poet Wallace Stevens. The reverse design, a fasces juxtaposed with an olive branch, was intended to symbolize America's readiness for war, combined with its desire for peace. The fasces symbol was later officially adopted by Benito Mussolini and his National Fascist Party, though this was the fourth party with a name invoking the fasces (in Italian: fascio) to which Mussolini had belonged. The symbol was also common in American iconography and has generally avoided any stigma associated with its usage in wartime Italy.

The 1916-D issue of only 264,000 coins is highly sought after, due largely to the fact that the overwhelming majority of the dimes struck at the Denver Mint in 1916 carried the pre-existing Barber design. Thus, the 1916-D is worth up to thousands of dollars if it is in relatively fine condition. A considerable number of common 1916 Philadelphia mint dimes have been altered with a "D" added, so buyers should be careful to purchase only from reputable dealers or to accept only sealed and graded coins.

Many coins in the "Mercury" series exhibit striking defects, most notably the fact that the line separating the two horizontal bands in the center of the fasces is often missing, in whole or in part; the 1945 issue of the Philadelphia Mint hardly ever appears with this line complete from left to right, and as a result, such coins are worth more than usual for uncirculated specimens. A valuable variety is an overdate, where 1942 was stamped over a 1941 die at the Philadelphia mint. A less obvious example from the same year is from the Denver mint.

Of particular interest to numismatics is the condition of the horizontal bands tying together the bundle on the fasces, on the coin's reverse. On well-struck examples, separation exists within the two sets of bands (known as Full Split Bands). Coins exhibiting this feature are typically valued higher than those without it.


Value Range

Year Mintage G F VF EF AU UNC BU PF
1939 S 10,540,000 $2.80 $3.60 $6.50 $8.10 $17.00 $26.00 $51
← 1939 double die 1940 →
Full Price Guide Catalogue for United States
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