1881 Proof Nickel Pattern - J-1672

Coin Details

Auction Record

$6,900 PR65 01-01-2003 Bowers & Merena

Description

Second nickel pattern variety from 1881, continuing Charles Barber's systematic exploration of Liberty Head designs for the five-cent piece. The obverse retains the leftward-facing Liberty Head with coronet, but this variety introduces modifications to the arrangement of stars and legends around the portrait, testing different spatial relationships between design elements. The reverse presents the Roman numeral V inside a wreath of corn, cotton, and wheat sheaves, a design element that would survive in modified form through to the adopted 1883 Liberty Nickel. This variety is distinguished from J-1671 by differences in the wreath composition, legend arrangement, or die characteristics. Barber's 1881 nickel patterns mark the beginning of a remarkable two-year design development process that would produce more than twenty-five distinct five-cent patterns before the final design was approved by Treasury Secretary Charles Folger in late 1882. Each variety in the series documents a specific design decision point, capturing the iterative refinement process that transformed Snowden's general instructions into a finished coin.

Rarity Notes

R-6 to R-7 (Very Rare to Extremely Rare). Estimated 8-15 specimens surviving.

Cross References

Judd J-1672, Pollock P-1873