1886-P VAM-1O

Description

Discovered in 2017 by LD Lane (known in the collecting community as ChiefRet), VAM-1O of the 1886 Philadelphia Mint Morgan Dollar documents an unusual die impression on the reverse eagle's right wing — a curved, thread-like mark visible at the 3rd through 4th inner feathers from the bottom. The full classification is III2 1 - C3a, indicating a standard obverse die of the III2 type paired with a C3a reverse bearing this distinctive die impression. Die impressions of this character — thin, curved, thread-like features embedded in the die surface — can result from foreign material becoming trapped between the hub and working die during the die sinking process, or from accidental contact with workshop tools or debris. Unlike die cracks or breaks that develop during striking, die impressions are present from the die's first strike and appear consistently on every coin produced from that die. The 1886-P Morgan Dollar had a mintage of 19,963,886, making it a relatively common Philadelphia date, but individual VAM varieties within that production can range from scarce to rare. The "1O" designation with the alphabetic suffix indicates this is a sub-variety within the VAM-1 family — sharing the same basic die characteristics as VAM-1 but distinguished by this additional reverse die feature. The VAM system's rarity plate designation of (189) places this variety within the broader tracking framework. Philadelphia struck Morgan Dollars without a mint mark, making die variety attribution rely entirely on die markers and positional characteristics rather than mint mark diagnostics.

External References