1924-P VAM-1AB

Description

Brought to the VAM catalog by Daniel Cooper in March 2006, the 1924-P VAM-1AB Peace Dollar is classified as II 1 - B2a with an impact rating of I-2 and a rarity of R-5, designated "Nose Bar Die Gouge." The obverse (II 1) exhibits a long striated vertical die gouge extending from the tip of Liberty's nose downward past the right side of the G in GOD and continuing nearly to the rim — a substantial linear die damage feature that spans a large portion of the obverse die face. The striated character of this gouge indicates it was created by a rough or textured object dragging across the die surface, leaving multiple parallel lines within the gouge channel rather than the single clean trench that a smooth tool would produce. The description distinguishes this gouge from the visually similar die gouge found on VAM-1Z, noting that VAM-1AB's gouge is shallower and more striated than VAM-1Z's, providing a comparative diagnostic between the two varieties that share a nose-area die gouge but differ in gouge depth and surface texture. The AB suffix in the VAM number indicates this is an alphabetically extended listing within the VAM-1 die family, documenting a die state or feature set that merited separate catalog status beyond the earlier numbered and lettered entries. The Peace Dollar was designed by Anthony de Francisci and struck at the Philadelphia Mint in 1924 from 90% silver at 26.73 grams with a 38.1 mm diameter. The 1924-P had a substantial mintage of approximately 11.8 million pieces. The vertical orientation of this gouge — running along the die face from the nose through the G in GOD toward the rim — follows an approximate radial line from the center of the die, a direction consistent with scoring from a tool or debris that slid across the die under the influence of centrifugal or gravitational forces during die servicing.

External References