1881-P VAM-7

Description

Discovered by Maurice Dubreuil in December 1974, the 1881-P VAM-7 Morgan Dollar carries the classification III2 7 - C3a (Doubled 1, Tripled 8) with die pairing number 180. The obverse (III2 7) presents a complex array of date digit anomalies: the first 1 is doubled at the bottom of the lower crossbar, the first 8 is tripled at the bottom outside of the lower loop and doubled at the top inside of both the upper and lower loops with a short spike visible at the top left inside of the upper loop, and all left and right stars are doubled faintly toward the rim. The tripling on the first 8 — where three distinct hub impressions are discernible rather than the more common two — indicates this die received at least three separate hub impressions during its manufacture, with each successive impression slightly offset from the previous ones. The short spike at the top left inside of the 8's upper loop is a particularly fine diagnostic detail that distinguishes this die from others with simpler doubled-8 characteristics. The reverse (C3a) is classified as a normal die with no significant anomalies. George T. Morgan's design was struck at the Philadelphia Mint in 1881 in 90% silver and 10% copper, weighing 26.73 grams with a 38.1 mm diameter and a reeded edge. The faint star doubling toward the rim across both left and right star fields indicates the hub displacement affected the peripheral design elements consistently, creating a subtle but widespread diagnostic that can be checked at multiple positions around the coin's border. Maurice Dubreuil's 1974 discovery places this among the earlier documented VAM varieties in the 1881-P die marriage catalog, predating many additions that came as the VAM collecting community expanded through the 1980s and beyond.

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