1890-CC VAM-11

Description

Discovered by Martin Field in March 1981, the 1890-CC Morgan Dollar VAM-11 is designated "Far Date, CC Tilted Left" for two distinct diagnostics: the date is positioned farther from the rim than normal, and the CC mintmark on the reverse is tilted to the left. Classified as 11 III2 3 - C3b with die pair number 178, this variety documents a die marriage from the Carson City Mint in Nevada — one of the most collectible mintmark facilities in U.S. numismatics, which operated from 1870 to 1893 using silver from the nearby Comstock Lode. The "far date" diagnostic refers to the date's position relative to the rim: each working die received its date from a hand punch, and the depth to which the punch was driven determined how close the date sat to the rim edge. A far date indicates the punch was set at a greater distance inward. The leftward tilt of the CC mintmark resulted from the angle at which the mintmark punch was applied to the reverse die — even slight angular variation in hand-punching created the tilted orientations that the VAM system meticulously records. Cataloged within the system developed by Leroy Van Allen and A. George Mallis, this regular strike was produced in 90% silver at 26.73 grams bearing George T. Morgan's iconic Liberty Head obverse and heraldic eagle reverse.

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