1870 5c PR

Key to Collecting: The 1870 Shield nickel is fairly scarce in all grades. When Mint State coins are found, they are apt to be less than MS-65. Gems with sharp details and good eye appeal are in the minority. Proofs have a problem with quality, too, and some searching is needed to find a nice one.

Characteristics and Appearance: Striking is about the same as found with 1869— better than for previous years, but still usually seen with some weakness on the horizontal shield lines and star centers.

Characteristics and Appearance: Regular Shield nickel Proof dies of the year, but usually seen with the reverse so highly polished that some of the details of the letters— such as sections from the tops of D, S, S, F, and R in UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, and the bottom of the S in CENTS—are removed. This die was also used on certain patterns. However, some Proofs are from a perfect die without broken letters. Proofs can vary in quality, with flaky or imperfect planchets.

Doubled-Die Obverse—If there is a numismatic equiva-lent to the Guide Michelin, it is the Fivaz-Stanton Cherry-pickers’ Guide to Rare Die Varieties. The authors rate the Interest Factor to determine whether a variety is (to continue the analogy) worth a special trip—this being five stars (points). Then come four stars, perhaps worth a detour. Three-star varieties are mainly of interest to specialists, who are not in the mainstream of the hobby. Two-star varieties seem to be scarcely worthy of notice, but can be interesting. As to one-star varieties, they are not listed. For 1870, Fivaz-Stanton have four 5-star attractions, including FS-103, F-03, which combines a doubled-die obverse (most noticeable on the annulet below the cross) and a slightly repunched date. It is rated as URS-4, meaning an estimated population of 5 to 8 pieces. The Shield Nickel Viewer, by Howard Spindel, adds this:

Clashed Die—FS-301, F-15, Flynn-MPD-001 (as it also has a misplaced date), with the comment that three or four are known, including one in Mint State. An interesting and rare 1870 Shield nickel was discovered by Ken Hill in 1994. In my 1996 book, A Buyer’s and Enthu-siast’s Guide to Flying Eagle and Indian Cents, I gave some notice to it and added an illustration. In April 1996, I learned that only one other had come to light since 1994, an example in the inventory of Larry Briggs. Today, the variety remains extremely rare. In 2005, one surfaced on eBay.8 Ken Hill recently added this: “I have attributed an Abt. G-3 coin, have seen a VF, and have heard from Michael Fey that he found an AU-58.”9 The obverse shows clash-mark impressions of the obverse of an Indian cent die. The face and headdress of Liberty appear clearly and in an inverted position in the background areas between the shield stripes on the nickel. The Indian cent obverse die was in the hammer (or top, movable) part of the setup in the coining press, while the obverse for the Shield nickel was in the anvil (or stake, immobile) position at the bottom.10 This clashing was probably inadvertent and was caused by mismatched dies in the press during the press setup process (much in the manner that the famous 1857 clashed-die Flying Eagle cents were created).

On the other hand, Thomas K. DeLorey, who has studied two-denomination clashed dies in various series, noted, “I believe that all of the dual-denomination clash mark varieties were deliberate mulings to create novelties.”11 On this 1870 nickel, the 1 in 1870 is lightly quadruple-punched.12 URS-2.

Repunched Date, Misplaced Date—Known as FS-302, Fletcher-01, and FlynnMPD-001, this misplaced date shows the top of a 0 in the denticles below and to the left of the regular 0 in 1870. Although opinions differ, I believe that most misplaced dates were made by using a numeral punch (not necessarily the one used for the full date) and making a tiny, “test” tap with it, in an unobtrusive spot, to determine the hardness of the die.

Doubled-Die Reverse—The reverse of this variety (FS-801, F-14) was first punched by a master die for the normal reverse, then overpunched with a master die for the Reverse of 1868. The illustration shows the star pointing to the M in AMERICA and the rays from each style. This is a very important variety from a technical viewpoint, but few collectors are aware of it.