Expert: Ronald Fern - 11/5/2009

Question
hello, i have a US dime dated 1923, it has a woman(i think) on the front and what looks to be a torch, plant, and tree on back. my grandmother said that it may be worth money, do you know if it is?

Answer
Sam:

There are several things that go into the value of a coin. The date, mint mark, and condition of the coin. You have what is normally called a "Mercury Head" dime. It was struck from 1916 to 1945. The Mercury Head Dime series is one of the most popular in all of American numismatics. To properly give you a good estimate of the value, you needed to give me the mintmark, if any, and the condition. I'll go ahead and give you the value range of all the 1923 dimes. The mintmark is located on the back of the coin on the lower left hand side, and would be a "D" for Denver, or a "S" for San Francisco. Coins struck at Philadelphia had no mint.

There was no "D" mint coin struck for 1923. The 1923-P and 1923-S have a "Coin Values" retail value of $3 in Good condition. In VG, the "P" goes to $3.50 and the "S" to $5. If your dime grades Fine, the value is $4 for the "P" mint, and jumps to $10 for the "S". A grade of Extra Fine would bring $8 for a "P" mint and $85 for a "S" mint to an interested collector. If you are lucky enough to have an Uncirculated example of the "P" mint coin, you would have a piece valued at $30. A "S" mint UNC dime would bring about $175. If UNC, you could expect more for a nicely struck coin with eye appeal, full split bands, etc.

Here's a link on grading Mercury dimes where you can get a better idea on the condition of your coin. http://coinauctionshelp.com/How_To_Grade_Mercury_Dimes.html

Here's a link for more information on Mercury Head dimes. http://coinauctionshelp.com/Mercury%20Dime%20Page.html

Your coin is struck in 90% silver and has a melt value of about $1.25 with silver trading in the $17 to $18 dollar a troy ounce range. See link: http://www.coinflation.com/silver_coin_values.html

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Thank You and Good Luck in your collecting.