United States Barber coinage

Liberty Head ("Barber") designs appeared on United States minor silver coinage (the dime, quarter, and half dollar) from 1892 to 1916. They derive their common name from their designer, Chief Engraver Charles E. Barber.

Origins

In 1887, Mint Director James P. Kimball included a statement in his annual report to the United States Congress requesting a coinage redesign. He proposed a process whereby distinguished artists would be invited to participate in the design process, and, in 1890, the United States Department of the Treasury asked ten eminent American artists to submit design proposals for minor silver coinage. However, this plan proved unworkable when the artists made financial demands that the Treasury was unwilling to meet. The next effort was a contest open to the public, but none of the designs submitted in this manner were satisfactory to the Mint. Ultimately, it fell to Charles Barber to create new designs for silver coinage. He did so, and the designs were first placed into production in 1892.

Basic design

Obverse

The basic obverse design of the Barber silver coinage consisted of a Liberty head with a cap and wreath. [ cite news | last = Taylor | first = Dr. Sol
publisher= Santa Clarita Valley Historical Society | accessdate = 2006-07-14
title = Barber's Silver Coinage: Fun Series to Collect | date = 2005-08-20
url = http://www.scvhistory.com/scvhistory/signal/coins/sg082005-coins.htm] This figure was inspired both by classical Greek and Roman models and by the designs of various 19th-century French coinage. The word "LIBERTY" appeared on the headband in incuse; since it wears relatively quickly in circulation, it is often used by numismatists to help determine the condition of circulated coins. The Liberty head is flanked by six stars on the left and seven on the right, and the motto "IN GOD WE TRUST" appears above it. The date is centered below the figure.

Reverse

There were two basic reverse designs on Barber coinage. The dime featured a wreath of American agricultural products with the words "ONE DIME" in the center. The mint mark, if any, was positioned below the wreath. This reverse design differed little from that of the old Seated Liberty dime.

On the quarter and half dollar, a heraldic eagle, similar to that featured on the Great Seal of the United States, is the central design element, with "QUARTER DOLLAR" or "HALF DOLLAR" and the mint mark (if any) located beneath it. As on the Great Seal, the eagle carries a banner in its beak reading "E PLURIBUS UNUM", and the amount of the motto visible is helpful to numismatic graders in determining the condition of circulated specimens. A field of 13 stars (the same number as on the obverse, representing the 13 original American colonies) appears above the eagle, and on the top edge, "UNITED STATES OF AMERICA" is inscribed.

Collectible Barber coins

Although the Barber series contains few mint marks or other aberrations, the 1894-S Barber Dime is one of the most valuable coins ever produced by the United States. Only 24 were produced. Of those, only nine remain, one of which sold for $1.9 million in 2007. [cite web
url = http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/07/27/DIME.TMP
title = 'I didn't eat and I didn't sleep' Coin dealer flies dime worth $1.9 million to NYC
work = [http://www.sfgate.com San Francisco Chronicle] ]

External links

* [http://www.coincommunity.com/us_coin_links/us_coinage_barber.asp US Barber Coinage by year and type.] Histories, photos, edge designs, designers, and more.
* [http://www.coinpage.com/barber-coin-pictures.html Barber Coin Pictures] Dimes, Quarters and Halves

References