On the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Dollar, he looks straight at you. But, it’s important to know that this is not a mint error.Īrtistically, the Presidential Dollars were the first to show the presidents in positions other than profile. Some collectors look for this and may value one more than the other. There was no particular way the coins were fed into the incuse stamping machine. One thing to note is that the incuse on the side of the coin may be stamped with the top of the lettering closest to the obverse OR closest to the reverse. To assist in this, I have included an article in the REFERENCES section below, called ” The Spruce Crafts – Presidential Dollar Error Coin Gallery.” As a collector, you want to know which of those boo-boos increase the value of the coin as opposed to just looking funny or being a conversation starter. You can’t assume that because your Presidential Dollar has odd things on it that it is worth more. The number of mint errors observable on the Presidential Dollar could fill an encyclopedia. Presidential Dollars are mostly copper and often have a melt value of less than five cents.) (Note that I said gold color and not gold metal. The darker Presidential Dollar commands a much higher price in numismatic circles. Many of the Presidential Dollars were minted improperly and are missing the top clad gold color they are supposed to have. Not only did the mint have trouble with the incuse on the side, but the clad layer on the coin was also troublesome. Upon magnification, the alterations become clear. Knowing that the Presidential Dollars with the missing incuse get a higher price, some machinists will remove it and polish the coin up so as to hide their nefarious trick. 2007 Washington – Missing Edge Lettering.There are three key dates to look for, as these are more valuable. Some Presidential Dollars were struck without the incuse on the side. In 2009 “In God We Trust” returned to the obverse of the dollar. This illustrates the misgivings people had for the motto being relegated to the side. When you read about these coins, you may see the term “Godless Dollar” referring to the early Presidential Dollars. This allowed, among other things, for the term of the president to be displayed on the obverse. The purpose for this was to create more space on the obverse and reverse of the coin. On the first Presidential Dollars, the year of mintage, mint mark, phrase “E Pluribus Unum” and motto “In God We Trust” was on the side of the coins.

The numismatic word for lettering or images struck into a coin is incuse. This was apparently very difficult for the mint and the number of errors in the minting of these coins is amazing. There were a few of these coins were released devoid of anything but a stamped rim.Īn interesting point in that these were the first coins to have words and images struck on the SIDE of the coin. The presidents were depicted sequentially, George Washington displayed on the first coin. These dollars were released four per year, each showing a different president. Bush signed the act into law.Ģ007 saw the first set of Presidential Dollars. Also, the coin was meant to spurn interest and usage of dollar coins in circulation. The act was intended to create a dollar coin to honor each deceased president. In 2005 the Presidential Coin Act was introduced by Senator John E. Sometimes when you try something for the first time, you make boo-boos …

Presidential dollar coins