1880-O VAM-15A

Description

Discovered by Mike Best in April 2006, VAM-15A for the 1880-O Morgan Dollar is classified as 15A III2 12 C3b, designated "Doubled 80 and Ear, Die Scratches Wings," with the reference number 176. This 90% silver New Orleans Mint issue features doubled digits in the 80 of the date and doubling at the ear on the obverse. The reverse, classified C3b, displays heavy die scratches in the middle of the eagle's left and right wings along with a single scratch between the legs. These wing scratches serve as prominent diagnostics that distinguish this variety from related die pairings. An important cataloging note: VAM-15 and VAM-15A appear to be unrelated marriages despite their shared primary number. VAM-15 exhibits a gouged star and lacks the vertical threadlike impression in the upper tail feathers that may be present on other dies in this family — the two should not be conflated. George T. Morgan's design, struck at 26.73 grams with 0.7734 troy ounces of pure silver, was produced at New Orleans from the resumption of dollar coinage in 1879 through the facility's final Morgan Dollar production in 1904.

External References