1042

1853 10C No Arrows MS68 NGC. Fortin-101a. Die clashing 1853[10C] No Arrows MS68 NGC.

Currency:USD Category:Coins & Paper Money / US Coins Start Price:1.00 USD Estimated At:1.00 - 1,000,000.00 USD
1853 10C No Arrows MS68 NGC. Fortin-101a. Die clashing 1853[10C] No Arrows MS68 NGC.
<B>1853<10C> No Arrows MS68 NGC.</B></I> Fortin-101a. Die clashing of the E of DIME onto the obverse die between Liberty's left (right facing) arm and the drapery; and on the reverse, die defects on the lower right serif of E of ONE and on the upper middle upright of the E of DIME. Actually, a later die state which Fortin did not list, as obverse clash marks from the reverse wreath are either very faint or do not show.<BR> The 1853 No Arrows dime, with a mintage of 95,000 business strikes, consisted of two deliveries: February 17, 1853 (55,000 pieces) and February 19 (40,000 pieces). Immediately after its production, the Mint Act of February 21, 1853, reduced the weight of the dime from 2.67 grams to 2.48 grams, proportionately with other coins through the half dollar. This was due to an increase in the price of silver that resulted from the immense discoveries of gold in California. The high silver price made it profitable to melt silver coins of the old weight standard, and they began to disappear from circulation. To distinguish the lower weight silver coinage, arrows were added to each side of the date (in addition, rays were added to the reverse of the quarter and half dollar in 1853).<BR> The 1853 No Arrows dime is scarce in all grades, largely resulting from it being heavily melted. According to Walter Breen in his <I>Complete Encyclopedia of U.S. and Colonial Coins:</B></I> "Mint State survivors mostly come from a batch (small hoard?) rescued by Harold P. Newlin before 1883." Still, Uncirculated examples, especially in the higher grades, appear infrequently on the market. Of the 130 or so Mint State specimens certified by NGC and PCGS, fewer than 30 have graded Premium Gem or better, some of these undoubtedly being resubmissions. A mere seven specimens have attained the MS68 grade level at both services combined, with none finer.<BR> The MS68 coin offered in this lot possesses outstanding luster that is complemented by medium intensity patination of cobalt-blue arou