1884-P VAM-8E

Description

Discovered by John Coxe in June 2006, the 1884-P VAM-8E Morgan Dollar is designated III28 - C3a for Far Date, Clashed Obverse n #3. The obverse die (III28) shows a clashed die with a faint curve of partial incuse letter n from the reverse word "In" appearing next to Liberty's head and neck. This is the third distinct clashed n variety on the 1884-P VAM-8 obverse die, with the clashed n positioned higher than on either the 1884-P VAM-8B or VAM-8C — indicating this die experienced multiple separate clash events, each at a slightly different die alignment, producing transfer marks at varying heights. This variety represents a clashed version of the 1884-P VAM-8.5, establishing a die-state relationship between the two listings. The far date placement, with the numerals positioned farther from Liberty's portrait than standard, serves as the primary obverse attribution point independent of the clash marks. The 1884 Philadelphia Morgan Dollar was struck from a mintage of 14,070,000 coins in 90% silver (10% copper) composition at 26.73 grams, 38.1 mm diameter with a reeded edge. The existence of multiple distinctly clashed states on a single obverse die demonstrates that die clashing was not always immediately detected or that corrective die polishing between clash events was insufficient to fully remove prior clash marks before a new clash occurred.

External References