1891 Proof Dime Pattern - J-1760

Coin Details

Description

Judd-1760 is the unique proof pattern dime produced during the landmark 1891 design competition that resulted in the Barber coinage series. On April 4, 1891, Mint Director Edward O. Leech issued a circular inviting American artists to submit designs for new dime, quarter, and half dollar coins. The competition attracted approximately 300 entries, but after a jury evaluated the submissions in June, none were deemed satisfactory. Leech then instructed Chief Engraver Charles E. Barber to prepare his own designs, directing him to model Liberty's head after the contemporary profile found on French coinage while making modifications as the engraver saw fit. The obverse of J-1760 displays Barber's Liberty Head facing right with a laurel wreath and a Phrygian cap, with UNITED STATES OF AMERICA above and the date 1891 below. The reverse features a wreath enclosing the denomination ONE DIME. This pattern varies slightly from the dies ultimately used for the production run beginning in 1892, though the reasons for the subtle changes between pattern and production are not documented. The sole known specimen resides in the Smithsonian Institution's National Numismatic Collection, having been transferred there with the Mint Cabinet collection in 1923. It has never been available to private collectors.

Rarity Notes

R-8. Unique. Single specimen in the Smithsonian National Numismatic Collection.

Cross References

Judd J-1760, Pollock P-1975