1880-S VAM-2

Description

One of the earliest documented Morgan Dollar varieties in the entire VAM catalog, VAM-2 of the 1880 San Francisco Mint issue was discovered by Howard Newcomb in February 1913 — predating the formal Van Allen-Mallis system by decades and representing some of the foundational research that would eventually evolve into the modern VAM classification framework. The full designation is III2 1 - C3b (Large S), identifying a standard obverse die of the III2 type paired with a reverse bearing a very large, centered, and upright S mint mark classified as type VI. The "Large S" designation is one of the most significant reverse diagnostics for 1880-S Morgan Dollars, as San Francisco used multiple mint mark punch sizes during this year's production. The large S is visually distinct from the small and medium S varieties, and collectors actively seek all three sizes to complete their 1880-S VAM sets. The obverse is described as a normal die of the III2 type, indicating no unusual die characteristics beyond the standard Morgan Dollar design. Howard Newcomb's 1913 discovery places this among the very oldest documented Morgan Dollar die varieties, contemporary with the era when collectors were first beginning to study die differences systematically. The 1880-S had a substantial mintage of 8,900,000, and with San Francisco generally producing better-struck specimens than the New Orleans facility, high-grade examples of VAM-2 with the Large S mint mark are achievable though not common. The VAM system's rarity plate designation of (186) tracks this variety within the broader population framework that helps collectors assess relative availability.

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