1928-S VAM-1

Description

San Francisco struck only 1.63 million Peace dollars in 1928, making it one of the scarcest regular-issue dates in the series and a coin that commands substantial premiums in all grades. VAM-1 identifies the standard die marriage — the baseline die pairing without extraordinary die markers — and serves as the foundation of the 1928-S VAM census. The low mintage severely limits the total number of working dies used during the production run, which correspondingly reduces the pool of distinct die marriages available for VAM attribution. Anthony de Francisci's Peace dollar design was in its seventh year of reduced-relief production by 1928, and the series would pause after this year until resuming briefly in 1934-1935. Only the San Francisco facility produced Peace dollars in 1928 — neither Philadelphia nor Denver struck the denomination that year — giving the 1928-S sole representation for the date in any Peace dollar collection. The S mintmark below the eagle's tail feathers on the reverse confirms the San Francisco origin. With a mintage this low, even the common VAM-1 die marriage produces relatively few surviving specimens compared to the millions available for dates like 1922-P or 1923-P. Collectors should be aware that 1928-S Peace dollars are frequently encountered in VF to AU grades, as many examples saw meaningful circulation before being saved, and fully uncirculated specimens carry significant premiums. The scarcity of the base date elevates the importance of every documented VAM variety, as even minor die diagnostics become noteworthy in a population this constrained.

External References