1890-S VAM-21

Description

Discovered by Martin Field in June 1981, VAM-21 documents an 1890-S Morgan Dollar bearing a San Francisco mintmark tilted to the left. Cataloged with die pair designation III2 1 - C3j, this variety's primary diagnostic is the angular displacement of the S mintmark from its intended vertical orientation — a result of the mintmark punch being held at a slight angle when driven into the working die. Mintmark position and tilt varieties constitute a major collecting category for Morgan Dollars because they provide direct evidence of the manual processes involved in die preparation at branch mints. Field was among the early researchers who systematically documented VAM varieties during the formative period of Morgan Dollar die study. Notably, VAM-21 shares its die pair with the now-delisted VAM-10G — the 10G designation was retired when researchers determined both entries represented the same die combination, and VAM-21 was retained as the primary listing. This consolidation reflects the ongoing refinement of the VAM catalog as attribution knowledge deepens.

External References