1892-S VAM-13

Description

Discovered in 2013, this 1892-S Morgan Dollar is cataloged as VAM-13 with the classification 13 III2 9 - C3a (190). The variety features doubled right stars on the obverse, where the star devices show evidence of a secondary impression offset from the primary strike of the hub into the working die. Die polishing lines visible in the hair provide an additional authentication marker, as these lines result from the Mint's efforts to extend die life by smoothing the working surface. San Francisco struck approximately 1.2 million Morgan Dollars in 1892, making the S-mint issue a lower-mintage entry in the series. Within that production, individual die pairs like VAM-13 represent specific combinations of obverse and reverse dies whose unique characteristics allow attribution to a single die pairing. The doubled stars diagnostic, combined with the die polishing evidence in the hair, gives variety collectors two independent identification points for confirming this attribution. As a relatively recent discovery, VAM-13 may still be underrepresented in census data.

External References