| United States | |
| Value | 0.10 U.S. dollars |
|---|---|
| Mass | 2.50 g |
| Diameter | 17.9 mm (0.705 in) |
| Thickness | 1.35 mm (0.053 in) |
| Edge | reeded |
| Composition | 90% Silver, 10% Copper |
| Years of minting | 1894 |
| Obverse | |
| Design | Lady Liberty with cap and cropped hair |
| Designer | Charles E. Barber |
| Design date | 1892 |
| Reverse | |
| Design | Wreath circling the words "ONE DIME" |
| Designer | Charles E. Barber |
| 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.[1] Another was sold in 2007 for 1.9 million dollars.[2] Only 24 were minted and of those only nine are known to survive.
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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 minted 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."
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.[3]