1856 Three-Cent Silver : A Collector’s Guide

By Charles Morgan and Hubert Walker for CoinWeek Notes …..
 

The Three-Cent Silver piece debuted in 1851, and throughout the 1850s saw mintages exceed the million coin mark seven times. For a country with a population of just over 23 million people, the Philadelphia Mint had produced a silver trime for every man, woman, and child in America by the end of the decade.

After gargantuan mintages of 18,663,500 in 1852 and 11,400,000 in 1853, demand for new coinage tapered off. The 1,458,000 Three-Cent Silver coins struck at Philadelphia in 1856 was a sudden turnaround from the much smaller mintage of 139,000 coins that were struck the year before.

Production of the 1856 Three-Cent Silver began on April 3 and concluded on October 29.

How Much Are 1856 Three-Cent Silver Coins Worth?

The 1856 Three-Cent Silver is an affordable coin in all circulated grades through AU58. A Choice AU example will command a retail price of about $350, which is half of what a typical Choice Mint State example will cost.

Three-Cent Silver pieces, being small billon coins, often do not have good eye appeal and many have been dipped to lighten the coin’s surface. Given the small collecting base of Three-Cent Silver coins and the incremental changes in grading standards for the series, we advise patience when choosing coins from this series.

* * *

Market Data and Noteworthy Specimens

Dealers Abner Kreisberg and Jerry Cohen offered an example of the 1856 Three-Cent Silver coin they described as “BU – A lovely example” for $475 in their ad in the February 1978 issue of The Numismatist.

Top Population: PCGS MS67+ (1, 5/2024), NGC MS66 (8, 5/2024), and CAC MS67 (1:0 stickered:graded, 5/2024).

• PCGS MS67+ CAC #40322946: As PCGS MS66 CAC #5818214. Bowers and Merena, March 2005, Lot 203; “The Eugene H. Gardner Collection, Part III,” Heritage Auctions, May 12, 2015, Lot 98101 – $23,500. As PCGS MS67 CAC #25684957. Heritage Auctions, August 2015, Lot 3953 – $28,200. Upgraded one point. Heritage remarked that the coin was among the four finest. As PCGS MS67+ CAC #40322946. “The Bob R. Simpson Collection, Part I,” Heritage Auctions, September 17, 2020, Lot 10018 – $31,200. Simpson novelty insert. Upgraded one-half point. Vintage green, orange, and red peripheral toning on both sides.
• PCGS MS67 #47951736: Heritage Auctions, July 20, 2023, Lot 3020 – $37,200.
• PCGS MS66+ CAC #83246004: As PCGS MS66 CAC #25200248. Heritage Auctions, July 9, 2015, Lot 3032 – $15,275. As PCGS MS66+ CAC #25650197. Legend Rare Coin Auctions, December 17, 2015, Lot 57 – $1,468.75. Upgraded by one-half point. As PCGS MS66+ CAC #83246004. Legend Rare Coin Auctions, July 13, 2017, Lot 97 – $16,450. Golden hue throughout with faint goldenrod streaks running diagonally across the surface.
• PCGS MS66+ CAC #30773963: “The Bob R. Simpson Collection,” Heritage Auctions, January 7, 2016, Lot 5279 – $9,400. Simpson on insert.
• NGC MS66 #6064325-009: Stack’s Bowers, August 16, 2023, Lot 5017 – $6,600. Apricot toning with a diagonal streak across the obverse.
• PCGS MS66 CAC #84018495: Legend Rare Coin Auctions, January-February 2015, Lot 31 – Passed; Legend Rare Coin Auctions, February 25, 2021, Lot 37 – $9,400. Splotchy rainbow toning throughout. Gold, orange, magenta, and green colors concentrated mostly on the obverse. Reverse is gold and russet.
• PCGS MS66 #35784630: Stack’s Bowers, August 15, 2018, Lot 1092 –  $10,800; Stack’s Bowers, November 13, 2020, Lot 9088 – $7,200. Antiqued blue and aubergine toning that streaks across the surfaces but is largely concentrated at the upper obverse and along the reverse periphery.
• PCGS MS66 #25254318: Heritage Auctions, September 8, 2016, Lot 5402 – $14,100.

* * *

Coin Specifications

* * *