1872 Nickel Patterns
Base
About This Coin
The 1872 Nickel Patterns is a United States nickel from the Trade Dollar Era Patterns (1871-1873) series — the final year of the series. In 1872, coins were struck at the Philadelphia Mint. The obverse features Liberty seated facing left, holding an olive branch extended to the viewer, with a sheaf of wheat behind and the reverse displays an eagle perched on a bale of goods, with an olive branch and three arrows. Minted during Reconstruction and the Gilded Age, as the nation healed from civil war and debated the role of silver and gold in the monetary system. Designed by William Barber.