1881 Proof Nickel Pattern - J-1674

Coin Details

Description

Fourth nickel pattern from the 1881 series, nearing the end of the initial year's design explorations for the replacement of the Shield Nickel. The obverse features the Liberty Head with coronet inscribed LIBERTY, and the reverse displays the Roman numeral V within the agricultural wreath. By this point in the sequence, Barber had established the core design elements — the leftward-facing Liberty portrait and the wreath-enclosed denomination — that would carry through into the 1882 patterns and ultimately into the adopted 1883 coin. The Shield Nickel, in production since 1866, had long been criticized for its busy, heraldic design, and the transition to the cleaner Liberty Head motif represented a significant aesthetic modernization of American coinage. J-1674 demonstrates the degree to which the design was already mature by late 1881, though substantial refinement of secondary elements like legends and mottoes remained for the following year.

Rarity Notes

R-6 to R-7 (Very Rare to Extremely Rare). Approximately 8-12 specimens known.

Cross References

Judd J-1674, Pollock P-1875