USA 5 cents Union Shield No Rays 1867
USA, Philadelphia
Rarity
Common
Attributes of Coins
| Region | USA |
|---|---|
| Denomination | 5 cents |
| Krause number | KM# 97 |
| Mintage | 28,890,500 |
| Metal | Copper-Nickel |
| diameter | 20.5 mm |
| weight | 5 g |
Obverse:
Weapon
Creators:
James Barton Longacre
IN GOD WE TRUST
Reverse:
Star
Creators:
James Barton Longacre
5 CENTS
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
Introduction of Coins
The removal of rays from the reverse of the Shield Nickel early in 1867 does seem to have cut down on the number of severe die cracks and cud breaks, but it did not achieve its second goal of making the coins strike up more fully. The example illustrated is typical, and it displays weakness on several stars and on the leaves opposite them on the obverse. This isssue enjoyed an extremely large mintage for the time period, the highest for the entire series. Circulated coins and those in lower Mint State grades are plentiful, while gems are moderately scarce. It's interesting to note, however, that the population drops off drastically at the MS 66 level; these coins simply weren't made well enough to merit higher grades. This subtype of the 1867 production is extremely rich in varieties. Most of these were the result of repunching the date, but a number of doubled-dies are also found. Another variety category concerns the "Missing Leaf" phenomenon. After the obverse hub was created, it was noticed that the second cluster of leaves on the right had only three leaves, while its opposite number on the left had four. An extra feather was added to several working dies to balance them out, but on others this feature was overlooked (the example illustrated has a tiny extra leaf added to the outside of the cluster). Only specialists care about such things, but it serves to highlight how complex the Shield Nickel series can be.Read More
