1883 Hawaiian Regular Issues

About This Coin

Struck at the Philadelphia Mint by Chief Engraver Charles E. Barber, the 1883 Hawaiian Regular Issues represent the only silver coinage ever produced for the Kingdom of Hawaii, commissioned by King Kalakaua I for his modernization program. The series comprises dime (umi keneta), quarter (hapaha), half dollar (hapalua), and dollar (akahi dala), all in .900 fine silver with reeded edges matching U.S. specifications. Combined mintage reached approximately 1.9 million, with the dollar denomination (500,000 struck) the scarcest today. A remarkable result of $192,000 in MS68 at Doyle demonstrates the premium condition rarity commands. The coins feature Kalakaua's portrait on the obverse and Hawaiian coat of arms on the reverse, combining Western numismatic conventions with national symbolism. They circulated until American annexation in 1898, when they were gradually replaced by standard U.S. coinage. Today these pieces occupy a unique niche at the intersection of Hawaiian history and American numismatics, cherished by collectors in both fields.