1886-O VAM-27

Description

Discovered in January 2023 by Brent Fogelberg and catalogued as III2 19 C3a, the 1886-O Morgan Dollar VAM-27 is titled "Doubled 1-6, Doubled Ear." The obverse (III2 19) presents two areas of hub doubling: the 1 in the date is slightly doubled at the bottom left of the lower crossbar, and the 6 is slightly doubled at the bottom interior of its lower loop. The Liberty ear is doubled at left and right interior, with the ear doubling becoming more strongly expressed in later die stages — a useful diagnostic, since ear doubling that intensifies with die progression is characteristic of this variety. An obverse die marker develops progressively: a diagonal die crack runs from the denticles through the M in UNUM to the cap in later die stages. The reverse (C3a) is confirmed by a heavy curved line in the wing-neck gap. DPIS data for this variety is C3/RE4. The New Orleans Mint's 1886-O Morgan Dollar is an actively collected date, and VAM-27's January 2023 discovery reflects the ongoing vitality of the VAMworld community in identifying unrecorded varieties even in well-studied issues. The progressive ear doubling across die stages is characteristic and useful for die-state collectors.

External References