1889-O VAM-13F

Description

Discovered in February 2009 and documented by VAMWorld, the 1889-O VAM-13F Morgan Dollar carries the classification III2 8 - C3a (Far Date, Denticle Impressions Below Arrow Feathers) with die pairing number 181. The reverse (C3a) exhibits an unusual feature: faint impressions of the outside of denticles arranged in three rows below the arrow feathers. The top row contains four dots positioned to the left and right of the lower arrow feather, the middle row has four dots below the arrow feathers, and the lower row features a single dot above the wreath top berry. These denticle impressions — transferred from the border of another die or hub during manufacture — document a contact event where the die face received an unintended impression from the coin's peripheral border design, embedding the serrated denticle pattern in an area normally showing smooth field. The "Far Date" component of the designation indicates the date is set further right than the standard position. George T. Morgan's design was struck at the New Orleans Mint in 1889, composed of 90% silver at 26.73 grams with a 38.1 mm diameter. The 1889-O is considered one of the key semi-scarce dates in the Morgan series with a mintage of approximately 11.9 million pieces. The three-row arrangement of transferred denticle impressions creates a systematic pattern rather than random marks, suggesting the contact event involved a controlled alignment between two surfaces — possibly occurring during die storage, handling, or the setup process where dies or hubs came into direct contact under pressure sufficient to transfer the denticle pattern into the working die's reverse face.

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