3492

1918-D Buffalo Nickel. 8 over 7 PCGS F12

Currency:USD Category:Coins & Paper Money Start Price:1,250.00 USD Estimated At:2,500.00 - 3,000.00 USD
1918-D Buffalo Nickel. 8 over 7 PCGS F12
The 1918/7-D overdate certainly rivals the 1916/1916 and 1937-D 3-leg nickel for the title of most popular and highly sought variety in the series. Though discovered as long ago as 1931, it remains scarce to this day.

The obverse die for this variety was actually made during the latter part of 1917 at the Philadelphia Mint. It was during the final quarter of each year that the Mint's engraving department began preparing dies for the new year's coinage. As described in David W. Lange's book on the buffalo nickel series, "a nationwide shortage of minor coins (cents and nickels) developed during 1917-18 and led to an unprecedented output of these. It is therefore easy to understand that dies for both 1917 and 1918 would have been in preparation during the latter months of 1917 to meet both current and anticipated needs.

"In sinking a working die, two or more impressions had to be taken from a working hub. Between each impression, the developing die was taken to the furnace to be annealed, or softened, since the first impression caused the metal to become work-hardened. It was then ready for another impression. Amid the haste to produce new dies, a working die that had already been impressed with a hub dated 1917 was then either inadvertently or intentionally given another impression from a hub dated 1918. The result was an overdate." (#3939)