1894-S Barber Dime

Infobox Coin
Country = United States
Denomination = Dime ($0.10)
Value = 0.10
Unit = U.S. dollars
Mass_troy_oz =
Mass = 2.50
Diameter_inch = 0.705
Diameter = 17.9
Thickness_inch = 0.053
Thickness = 1.35
Edge = reeded
Composition = 90% Silver, 10% Copper
Years of Minting = 1894
Catalog Number =
Obverse =
Obverse Design = Lady Liberty with cap and cropped hair
Obverse Designer = Charles E. Barber
Obverse Design Date = 1892
Reverse =
Reverse Design = Wreath circling the words "ONE DIME"
Reverse Designer = Charles E. Barber
Reverse Design Date = 1892

The 1894-S Barber Dime is a dime produced in the United States Barber coinage. It has been compared to the 1804 Silver Dollar and the 1913 Liberty Nickel. It is one of the most highly prized United States coins for collectors. One was sold in 2005 for 1.3 million dollars. [cite web
url = http://scoop.diamondgalleries.com/scoop_article.asp?ai=7975&si=123
title = 1894-S Barber Dime Sells for $1.3 Million at Auction
work = [http://scoop.diamondgalleries.com/default.asp Scoop: Where the magic of collecting comes alive] ] Another was sold in 2007 for 1.9 million dollars. [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] ] Only 24 were minted and of those only nine are known to survive.

History of the 1894-S Dime

In the first half of 1894, 24 proofs of the Barber series dimes were minted in San Francisco, which is where the 'S' in the common name of the coin comes from. Very little is known as fact about the dimes. The superintendent of the San Francisco Mint is said to have had them printed as gifts for some important bankers. Further, three of the dimes were said to have been given to the superintendent's daughter who allegedly spent one on ice cream and sold the other two in the 1950s.

In an attempt to consolidate all known facts about the 1894-S Dime, Kevin Flynn, a well-known numismatist author, wrote a book in 2005 titled "The 1894-S Dime A Mystery Unraveled."

Value of the 1894-S Dime

Due to the rarity of the coin and the mysteries surrounding its past, the 1894-S Dime is one of the most valuable coins produced in the United States. In the late 1990s one of the remaining 1894-S Dimes was bought for $825,000. Since then they have sold for $1,035,000 in 2005; $1.3 million also in 2005; and $1.9 million in 2007. [ [http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/07/27/DIME.TMP Rubenstein, S.] (2007). "'I didn't eat and I didn't sleep': Coin dealer flies dime worth $1.9 million to NYC." San Francisco Chronicle.]

References

External links

* [http://www.coinfacts.com/Dimes/barber_dimes/1894s_barber_dime.htm Coin Facts: 1894-S BARBER DIME]
* [http://scoop.diamondgalleries.com/scoop_article.asp?ai=11183&si=121 1894-S Dime A Mystery Unraveled!]
* [http://scoop.diamondgalleries.com/scoop_article.asp?ai=7975&si=123 1894-S Barber Dime Sells for $1.3 Million at Auction]
* [http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/07/27/DIME.TMP Coin dealer flies dime worth $1.9 million to NYC]
* [http://www.coinresource.com/guide/photograde/pg_10cBarberDime.htm Barber Dimes 1892-1916]