By Charles Morgan and Hubert Walker for CoinWeek Notes …..
For the third year in a row, the Philadelphia Mint struck more Proof Three-Cent Nickels in 1885 than circulation strikes. After a million-coin mintage in 1881, new emissions of the outmoded oddball denomination were unnecessary. A paltry mintage of 1,000 circulation strike 1885 Three-Cent Nickels seems even smaller when you calculate its total face value of $30.
From this original number, Stack’s Bowers cataloguers doubt that even 350 of the date survive in all grades, with more than 50% in circulated condition. Checking this assertion against current population data, the leading grading services (CAC, NGC, and PCGS) report a total of 176 grading events with 80 of these in Mint State. Stacks’ Bowers’ estimate checks out.
While the Proof version is offered for sale with some frequency, the circulation strike requires more patience to acquire. Certification is essential as impaired Proofs may appear indistinguishable from business strikes to the untrained eye.
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Market Data and Noteworthy Specimens
The NGC MS66 population has risen from two to six in the past year.
Top Population: PCGS MS67 (2, 8/2024), NGC MS66 (6, 8/2024), and CAC MS67 (1:1 stickered:graded, 8/2024).
- PCGS MS67 #21765648: “The Bruce Scher #1 All-Time PCGS Registry Set,” Heritage Auctions, February 24, 2005, Lot 4020 – $19,118.75. Bruce Scher on insert. Nearly pristine surfaces. Sharply struck.
- PCGS MS66+ #25383974: Heritage Auctions, November 1, 2013, Lot 3526 – $21,150; Stack’s Bowers, August 2020, Lot 1169 – $17,000 Reserve Not Met.
- CACG MS66 #995952458: Dell Loy Hansen; DLRC, August 8, 2024, Lot 781236 – View.
- PCGS MS66 CAC #25605004: Heritage Auctions, June 9, 2016, Lot 4308 – $16,450. Streaky gold and peach toning. Dark spot to the right of 5. On the reverse, there is a dark spot near the denticles near 3 o’clock.
- PCGS MS66 #25204287: Heritage Auctions, June 4, 2015, Lot 3805 – $16,450. Scattered spotting in the upper obverse field and over the hair and coronet. Diagonal streak across nose and cheek. Well struck.
- NGC MS66 CAC #3058475-001: Heritage Auctions, January 4, 2012, Lot 3077 – $20,700; Heritage Auctions, June 23, 2014, Lot 30132 – $22,325.
- PCGS MS66 CAC #5180369: Heritage Auctions, January 7, 2010, Lot 2452 – $29,900.
- PCGS MS66 #2857043: Heritage Auctions, March 28, 2009, Lot 433 – $18,975.
- PCGS MS66 #1137590: Heritage Auctions, September 22, 2005, Lot 1326 – $17,250. Rattler.
- PCGS MS66 #21948490: “The Western Hills Collection,” Heritage Auctions, June 2, 2005, Lot 5385 – $16,100. Two dark spots to the right of the date. Streak across the bottom of UNI. On the reverse, dark spot to the right of the III.
- PCGS MS66 #21685364: Heritage Auctions, May 4, 2005, Lot 5770 – $16,100. Planchet void near the denticles below second A of AMERICA. Small tick to the right of 5. Small planchet void in the hair upper right above ear.
- NGC MS66: “The Richard C. Jewell Collection,” American Numismatic Rarities, March 8, 2005, Lot 386 – $10,350.
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Design
Obverse:
The obverse features a left-facing head of Liberty. Liberty wears a pointed diadem inscribed with the word LIBERTY. Surrounding the head is the legend UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. The date appears at the bottom. The coin has a denticulated border and a raised rim.
Reverse:
A large Roman numeral III dominates the reverse of the design. A closed wreath surrounds this figure.
Edge:
The edge of the 1885 Three-Cent Nickel–like all Three-Cent Nickels–is plain or smooth, without reeding or lettering.
Coin Specifications
| Country: | United States of America |
| Year of Issue: | 1885 |
| Denomination: | Three Cents (USD) |
| Mintmark: | None (Philadelphia) |
| Mintage: | 1,000 |
| Alloy: | .750 Copper, .250 Nickel |
| Weight: | 1.94 g |
| Diameter: | 17.90 mm |
| Edge: | Plain |
| OBV Designer: | James Barton Longacre |
| REV Designer: | James Barton Longacre |
| Quality: | Business Strike |
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My 2¢ is that the 3¢ denomination was hardly oddball in the context of the time. When first introduced in 1851 as a small silver coin (colloquially called a “trime”), the Mint faced multiple challenges. These included hoarding of most subsidiary silver coins and the unpopularity of 1¢ pieces due to their large size and lack of legal-tender status. The new trime, along with revisions to coin weights, helped dent the hoarding of silver. Its value also simplified the purchase of postage stamps when rates were lowered from 5¢ to 3¢.
Of course the creation of a nickel-alloy version in 1865 is a far more complex story, involving further need for low-denomination coins during and after the Civil War, lobbying from the nascent nickel-mining industry, and other factors. Nonetheless the 3¢ denomination in one form or the other lasted for nearly four decades.