General Comments
In 1864 silver dollar mintage continued the recovery that began in 1863. Over 30,000 coins were minted.
This date is like 1861, 1862, and 1863. It’s very popular with collectors due to both low mintage and
its status as a Civil War date. However, we note a little more availability than those earlier Civil War
dates. 1864 coins are scarce, but not so much so as the three previous Civil War issues. The exception
is high-grade examples. In mint state this date is tied with 1865 as the rarest of the Civil War dates.
Most price guides recognize the additional availability in the lower grades. When offered, nice examples
usually sell near the prices listed. In mint state grades, it’s a different story. Mint state coins of
1864 and 1865 should be priced higher than the other Civil War dates, with the availability being about
half. In most cases, all the Civil War dates are listed in the same price range. We believe that this
date is still slightly underpriced in circulated grades, and significantly underpriced in mint state.
Don’t underestimate the influence of the demand created by Civil War collectors.
Nice examples can be located, but patient searching is required. As with most dates from this era high
grades, both proof and business strikes, are more available than lower grades. However, 1864 coins are
much more available in lower grades than their Civil War predecessors. The population reports show that
more than half of the business strikes currently in holders are less than AU50, whereas for the previous
years this number is around 25%. Problem-free examples in grades lower than XF are still very scarce,
and will generally bring prices at or above what most price guides would indicate.
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Mintage | 31,170 |
Proof mintage | 470 |
Mintage ranking | 20th |
Finest known | MS66 PR68 |
Known obverse dies | 4 |
Known reverse dies | 3 |
Known die marriages | 5 |
Most common die marriage | OC-1/ R2 |
Rarest business strike die marriage | OC-1/ R2 |
Rarest proof die marriage | OC-P3/ R6- |
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Conversely, as noted above, high-grade examples of the date are scarcer than might be assumed. Only 54 coins
have received a mint state grade. Compare this to the previous Civil War years. Reports show mint state
populations of 106, 124, and 107 coins for 1861, 1862, and 1863 respectively. 1864 is unexpectedly rare in
mint state! The finest known business strike is a single MS66 example graded by PCGS. 16 coins have been
graded MS65, 9 at PCGS and 7 at NGC. Three of the PCGS coins were evaluated as MS65+. Another 15 coins have
received a MS64 grade. As with all dates several of the coins noted above surely represent re-submissions.
Population statistics are as of February, 2019.
The finest known proofs are three PR68 coins graded by NGC. The highest proof graded by PCGS is a single PR67
example. NGC has graded two coins at this level. 14 coins have received a PR66 grade. One PCGS coin was
evaluated as PR66+. 43 have been designated PR65. A total of 405 coins have been graded at all levels of
proof by the two major services. This number places 1864 proofs in a consistent pattern with earlier dates
after 1858. It also underscores the problem of re-submissions reported in the grading service population
reports. We estimate that only a total of 300 1864 proofs survive. Population statistics are as of February, 2019.
1864 examples are usually well struck. Star centrals are usually sharply defined, and all other details above
average. Reverses are almost always sharp, only occasionally displaying slight weakness on the upper left wing.
High-grade business strikes are often prooflike or semi-prooflike, but frosty examples are equally available.
In reviewing auction records we noted two different business strike examples in proof holders, one of them
graded PR63.
1864 Die Marriages
5 die marriages have been positively identified. A single die pair was used to strike all business strikes.
Neither die was used for proofs. Three different obverse dies were paired with two different reverses,
both carried over from the 1863 proof production, to produce four proof die marriages. The following table
summarizes the known die marriages:
Click the links below to view the details of each die marriage.
Die Marriage |
Rarity |
Obverse Die |
Reverse Die |
Estimated Survivors |
OC-1 |
R2 | 1 | A | 600 |
OC-P1 |
R4 | P1 | 1863 PA | 150 |
OC-P2 |
R4+ | P2 | 1863 PA | 110 |
OC-P3 |
R6- | P3 | 1863 PB | 25 |
OC-P4 |
R5- | P1 | 1863 PB | 65 |
We should note that a fourth obverse die was available for proof production. It was used to strike the
with motto patterns (J-396, J-397, J-398, and J-399). To date we haven’t confirmed the
use of this die for regular issue 1864 proof production. The reverse die used for these patterns was
our Reverse 1871 PA, indicating that they were probably struck in the 1870-1871 timeframe.
1864 Business Strike Emission Sequence
With only a single business strike die marriage the emission sequence is simple.
Emission Order |
Die Marriage |
Comments |
1 | OC-1 | |
1864 Proof Emission Sequence
We believe that the extent of die polish on Obverse P1 and Reverses 1863 PA and 1863 PB indicates
that the sequence listed below is correct (with the exceptions noted). However, the differences are minute,
and open to interpretation. OC-P4 is a recently discovered die marriage. As a result it appears to be out
of order in the emission sequence.
Emission Order |
Die Marriage |
Comments |
1 | OC-P1 | |
2 | OC-P4 | Obverse P1 die polish slightly reduced the unfinished area under the chin |
3 | OC-P2 | Sequencing of OC-P2, OC-P3, and OC-P4 is partially subjective. We know that
OC-P2 and OC-P4 came after OC-P1, and that OC-P3 came after OC-P4. Placement of OC-P2 and OC-P4 in positions 2 and 3 is arbitrary. The positions could be reversed. |
4 | OC-P3 | |
1864 Quick Finder Chart
Attribution of 1864 die marriages is relatively easy. Neither the obverse nor reverse dies display major markers,
but the obverse date positions are different enough to allow attribution of the obverse without worrying too much
about the reverse. Only OC-P1 and OC-P4 share an obverse die. Minor reverse die markers allow easy identification
of those two die marriages. The following table lists the keys for identifying each variety.
Die Marriage |
Obv Die |
Rev Die |
Right Base of 1 |
Keys |
OC-1 | 1 | A | JL of C |
Obverse: RB of 1 is JL of C. Very high date.
Reverse: Vertical lines 1-1, 1-2, and 1-3 extend very faintly to horizontal line 2.
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OC-P1 | P1 | 1863 PA | JL of RE |
Obverse: Centered date slants S down. Base of 1 is JL of RE. 1 lines up 5-4.0.
Reverse: No extensions of the vertical shield lines. The lowest horizontal shield line crosses the shield border,
barely poking into the wing feathers. Dies usually but not always rotated 5-15 degrees counterclockwise.
| OC-P2 | P2 | 1863 PA | L QTR |
Obverse: Slightly high date slants down. Base of 1 is JL of RE. 1 lines up 5-1.5.
Reverse: No extensions of the vertical shield lines. The lowest horizontal shield line crosses the shield border,
barely poking into the wing feathers.
| OC-P3 | P3 | 1863 PB | JL of C |
Obverse: Low level date. Base of 1 is JL of C. 1 lines up 4-2.5.
Reverse: Vertical shield line 1-3 extends to horizontal line 5.
| OC-P4 | P1 | 1863 PB | JL of RE |
Obverse: Centered date slants S down. Base of 1 is JL of RE. 1 lines up 5-4.0.
Reverse: Vertical shield line 1-3 extends to horizontal line 5.
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Photo credits:
Obverse and reverse full photos:   1864 NGC PR68, finest known, from the Heritage archives.
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