Nickel (U.S. coin)
| Nickel (United States) | |
| Value: | US dollars |
| Mass: | g |
| Diameter: | mm |
| Thickness: | mm |
| Edge: | plain |
| Composition: | 75% Cu, 25% Ni |
| Obverse | |
| |
| Design: | Thomas Jefferson |
| Designer: | Felix Schlag |
| Design Date: | 1938 |
| Reverse | |
| |
| Design: | Monticello |
| Designer: | Felix Schlag |
| Design Date: | 1938 |
The United States five cent coin, commonly called a nickel, is a unit of currency equaling one 1/20th of a United States dollar. Its current design features the profile of President Thomas Jefferson on the obverse and Monticello on the reverse. This design has been used since it was first issued in 1938 as a replacement for the buffalo nickel.
Nickels are 21.21 mm in diameter, 1.95 mm thick, with a plain edge. With the exception of a period during World War II, nickels have been made out of an alloy of 25% nickel and 75% copper. In the middle of 1942, the composition changed to 56% copper, 35% silver, and 9% manganese, but this change in content ended in 1945. The wartime nickels are distinguished by the oversize mintmark on the reverse, located above Monticello instead of to the right of it; also Philadelphia coins of this period bear a P in this location instead of the customary lack of mintmark, making the 1942-P nickel the first ever instance of a P mintmark appearing on a U.S. coin.
During 2004 and 2005, the nickel will feature two new designs on its reverse, celebrating the bicentennials of the Louisiana Purchase and the Lewis and Clark expedition. The changes will not affect operating vending machines. (See Westward Journey Nickel Series below.)
Shield Nickels were the first nickel five cent piece minted in the United States. (A three cent nickel piece was minted one year prior) Before this point, 5 cent pieces were very small coins, called half dimes, that were composed primarily out of silver. Shield nickels were minted from 1866-1883. There is an early variety with rays going out from the 5 through the stars. These were minted only in 1866 and part of 1867. They were first minted in nickel due to shortages of small coinage due to silver hoarding during and after the civil war. There was also political intrigue originating from the owner of the only nickel mine in the United States at the time.
Shield nickels with and without rays
V nickel with and without "cents
V Nickels were minted from 1883-1912 with a special minting of 5 pieces in 1913, making these pieces one of the most rare and valuable U.S. coins. One was auctioned at the Salt Lake ANA Show in March 2001 for 1.8 million dollars. There are many fake 1913s, mostly altered 1912 pieces. These coins were made famous by a dealer from Texas named Max Mehl who offered $50 for one of these in his advertisements. He never had to pay as no more were ever found, but it did make the coin very famous and desirable.
In July 2003, one of the five which had been missing for many years was finally located.
An interesting story surrounding the V nickel is about the 1883 without "cents" issue. These were the same size as a five dollar gold piece, so some counterfeiters plated these with gold, and attempted to pass them off as $5 gold pieces. According to legend, a deaf-mute named Josh Tatum was the chief perpetrator of this fraud, and he could not be convicted because he simply gave the coins in payment for purchases of less than five cents, but did not protest if he was given change appropriate to a five-dollar coin. There is no historical
record of Tatum outside of numismatic folklore, however, so the story may well
be apocryphal [1].
The buffalo nickel (also known as the Indian head nickel) was produced from 1913 to 1938. Buffalo nickel
The buffalo nickel, which was designed by James Earle Fraser, featured a side-profile Native American on the front (reportedly a composite of three chiefs: John Big Tree, Iron Tail and Two Moons) and an American bison, or buffalo, on the back. (The buffalo model was "Black Diamond," an American bison who lived at New York City's Central Park Zoo.) Fraser's design has been widely copied is generally considered to be among the best designs of any U.S. coin.
There was a major type change in mid-1913 when the mound on the reverse was changed to an incuse flat plane mid year because of wear problems. Unfortunately, they did not change the date placement, so many buffalo nickels have their dates completely worn off or nearly so, although, as the series progressed, the date was gradually struck with larger and bolder numerals, alleviating if not eliminating this problem. Dateless buffalo nickels are used to make belts and other things, so they aren't entirely worthless, but nearly so. Occasionally people will use acid in an attempt to identify a worn date. This is occasionally useful in filling expensive holes in your collection. Some dateless buffalo nickels can have their date determined by very small die markers. In addition to weak dates, many buffalo nickels - especially those minted in Denver or San Francisco in the 1920s - are found with the horn and/or tail on the reverse, or the word "LIBERTY" on the obverse, badly struck and lacking complete detail (1926-D is particularly noted for these defects).
The mint mark (if present) is on the reverse beneath the Five Cents and
above the rim. It could be a D for Denver, and S for San Francisco or
nothing for Philadelphia.
Some 1.2 billion buffalo nickels were issued during the coin's 26-year lifespan, and only one date/mintmark combination (the 1926-S) had a mintage of less than 1 million. No buffalo nickels were made in 1922, 1932 and 1933 (the lack of 1922 nickels resulting from the Mint's placing a priority on silver dollar production in that year, with no nickels - and many other denominations - being issued in 1932 or 1933 due to the Great Depression).
Jefferson nickels have been made from 1938 to the present with very little design change (the exception being the planned Lewis and Clark commemorative mentioned above.)
Jefferson nickels are one of the easiest sets of any denomination to collect from circulation. You can still find coins from the 40s in circulation on occasion. Since putting together collections from circulation is a fun way to start in the hobby, a Jefferson nickel set is a great place to start a coin collection with kids.
The reverse of the Jefferson nickel features Monticello, the home of Thomas Jefferson (who is featured on the obverse). Jefferson designed Monticello himself as he was a reasonably good architect. Many Jefferson nickel collectors look for fully struck steps on the image of Monticello. Premiums are paid for coins with 5 full steps and even more with 6 full steps. These are fairly rare, even on current issues. It requires a little practice and a lot of magnification to find one of these. Also lots of patience.
The Jefferson nickel was designed by Felix Schlag. He won a contest for the design. Production began in 1938 (noting that there were also buffalo nickels issued in 1938). As of 2004, the design is still current with minor modifications.
From mid 1942 to 1945, so called "Wartime" composition nickels were created. These coins are 56% copper, 35% silver and 9% manganese. The only other US coin to use manganese are the current Sacagawea dollars. These coins are usually a bit darker than regular nickels, due to tarninshing of the silver, and feature the largest mint mark ever to grace a United States coin. The mint mark on these is above the dome on the reverse. Normally, the series features mint marks to the right of the Monticello building. If there is no mint mark there, then the coin was minted in Philadelphia. In the early 1980s, the mint mark was switched to the front of the coin, and P marks Philadelphia. Even these war nickels are occasionally found in circulation.
Proofs and special mint set coins (1965-67) as well as Matte Proofs exist, and have value above the regular issued coins.
In 2004 and 2005, the reverse of the nickel will change, with two different designs during the year. The first design, to be placed into circulation 1 March 2004, will feature a design on the reverse based upon a rendition of the original Indian Peace Medal commissioned for Lewis and Clark's expedition. It was designed by Norman E. Nemeth.
In the autumn of 2004, the reverse will change again to feature a view of the keelboat in full sail that transported members of the Corps of Discovery expedition and their supplies through the rivers of the Louisiana Territory. This design depicts Meriwether Lewis and William Clark in full uniform, standing in the bow of the keelboat. This nickel was designed by Al Maletsky.
In 2002, the U.S. Mint proposed changing the reverse of the 2003 nickels as well, to show the image of an American Indian and a bald eagle facing west. Congress allows them to make changes to coinage every 25 years without specific authorization. But, Congressman Eric Cantor (R-Virginia), the Chief Deputy Majority Whip for his party, objected to the lack of consultation with Congress about their proposal, and was particularly concerned that Monticello, located in his district, would not return to the reverse of the nickel in 2006. There was also concern that the Mint's proposed new reverse did not relate specifically enough to Lewis & Clark or the Louisiana Purchase. This led to the enactment of Public Law 108-15, the American 5-cent Coin Design Continuity Act, in 2003, which modified the United States Code to require the return to a depiction of Monticello starting in January 2006. The controversy meant the Mint ran out of time to change the reverse of the nickel in 2003.Shield Nickels
V Nickels
Buffalo Nickel
Jefferson Nickel
Westward Journey Nickel Series
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