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Arguable one of the most beautiful coins ever produced in an American mint, the Mercury Dime is small but highly collectible. At a diameter of only 17.9mm and 2.5g in weight the small coin still manages to display some intricate detail.

The Mercury Dime is actually misnamed as it is not Mercury depicted on the coin, but rather is Liberty making use of Phrygian cap. The cap is historically meant to portray freedom, linking into the American ideal of Liberty. The original name for the dime was meant to be the Winged Head Liberty dime, but early on its circulation the name Mercury was applied to it, and it has lived on.

The designer of the Mercury Dime was Adolph A. Weinman a leading sculptor, who won a competition to design the dime. History points to the bust of Elsie Kachel Stevens being the model for Liberty, Elsie, and her poet husband, Wallace Stevens, being one time tenants of Weinman. On the reverse there is a fasces combined with an olive branch and battle axe, the fasces being an old icon for authority, all designed to indicate the desire of the nation for peace but also the preparedness for war. An apt sentiment as World War One raged on in Europe.

The US mint was anyway in need of a change in coinage, the Mint Director was in the mistaken belief that the law required a change, although the wording actually says a coin cannot be changed within twenty five years. Thus in 1916 the Barber dime was replaced with the new Mercury Dime; a dime that consisted of 90% silver (or 0.07234 ounce of pure silver) and 10% copper.

The Mercury Dime lasted through until the end of the Second World War, when it was replaced by a dime with a portrait of former President Franklin D Roosevelt upon it. Hundreds of millions of Mercury Dimes were produced in thirty years of minting, indeed in several years Philadelphia alone produced in excess of 100million coins.

As with any collecting the cost or worth of any Mercury Dime is subjective and is dependent on the amount that anyone is willing to pay. That being said most Mercury Dimes from any particular year can be purchased for a few dollars. Remembering even with the absence of coins from 1922, 1932 and 1933, and coins being struck in Denver, Philadelphia and San Francisco a complete set can be accumulated for a couple of hundred dollars. This though is the basic level of prices for Mercury Dimes, and normally means that the coins of low grade or quality.

Quality is of course everything and the higher the grade of coin the higher its value. The Mercury Dimes are often subject to striking defects and as a result Full Split Bands, where separation is evident between the horizontal bands tying the bundle together on the coin's reverse, are highly sought after. Wear is also normally evident around the hair and ear of Liberty, and will bring down potential prices.

Despite the many millions of Mercury Dimes that were minted during its lifespan there are several rarities that many collectors try and hunt down. The 1916 Denver minted coin was only pressed some 264,000 times, far fewer than the multi-million coins produced in other years. In 1916 Denver the dies were not ready for production and so the previous Barber design was utilised to meet demand. Mint 1916 D Mercury Dimes can go for many thousands of dollars, but it is a question of buyer beware as many dimes have been altered to increase their apparent value. Scare overdates from Denver and Philadelphia from 1942, where 1941 dies were over-stamped. The other scarce Mercury Dimes include 1921 and 1921 Denver coins.

There are certainly worse coins to base a collection around and with the history and beauty associated with it the Mercury Dime sets seems like a good investment as well.

Learn more about this author, Tim Harry.
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