1903-O VAM-12

Description

Discovered by Mike Faraone of ANACS in May 1997, the 1903-O VAM-12 is a Morgan dollar variety struck at the New Orleans Mint featuring an O/O Down repunched mintmark. Classified as III2 6 - C4g (O/O Down), this variety documents a mintmark punch error on the reverse die where the O mintmark was punched a second time in a lower position. The Morgan dollar is composed of 90% silver and 10% copper, weighing 26.73 grams with a 38.1 mm diameter. The New Orleans Mint produced 4,450,000 Morgan dollars in 1903, the next-to-last year of original Morgan dollar production at that facility before the series was suspended in 1904. The obverse die, classified as III2 6, shows very slightly doubled nose, lips, and chin on Liberty's profile, with a closed 9 in the date. These facial doublings result from a secondary hub impression and are subtle enough to require magnification for confirmation. The reverse die, designated C4g, is the primary diagnostic die. The III O mintmark (a Type III O mintmark in the Morgan dollar classification system) was repunched with the original position showing as a thin curved line at the lower left outside and a slight short horizontal line next to the top right outside of the final O position. This downward displacement of the original punch creates the O/O Down designation. Mike Faraone's discovery while working at ANACS, one of the major third-party grading services, demonstrates how professional numismatic examination contributes to variety documentation. The 1903-O is the final regular-date New Orleans Morgan dollar (1904-O being the last year), giving this variety historical significance as one of the late-production die anomalies from this long-serving Southern mint facility.

External References