1889-P VAM-1C1

Description

Discovered by Peter Hohnstein in 2013 and documented by VAMWorld, the 1889-P VAM-1C1 Morgan Dollar is classified as 1C1 III21 · C3a (Die Scratches Below Tail Feathers, Denticle Impressions TF) with die pairing number 190. The reverse (C2a) exhibits two raised triangles below tail feathers #5 and #6 with denticle spacing — anomalous raised elements whose regular spacing matching the denticle pattern suggests they originated from an impression of the coin's border denticles onto the die face, possibly during a die clash or contact event that transferred the evenly spaced denticle geometry onto the reverse working area below the tail feathers. Additional reverse features include a shallow slanted die scratch below the middle of the tail feathers and a short tick below the second tail feather from the right. The catalog notes this die is the same as VAM-52, which has been delisted, meaning the VAM-52 designation was eliminated from the active catalog and its die marriage consolidated under the VAM-1C1 classification — a common catalog maintenance action that reduces redundancy when previously separate designations are determined to represent the same die. George T. Morgan's design was struck at the Philadelphia Mint in 1889 in 90% silver at 26.73 grams with a 38.1 mm diameter. The 1889-P had a substantial mintage of approximately 21.7 million pieces. The denticle-spaced raised triangles below the tail feathers represent an unusual die anomaly whose specific origin mechanism — whether from a tilted die clash, collar contact, or another production event — remains a subject of collector discussion, and their geometric regularity matching the border denticle pattern provides a distinctive attribution point that is unlike the random positioning of typical die chips or gouges.

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