COIN collectors are paying big bucks for a rare nickel with an interesting strike error.
The 1916 Buffalo nickel, also known as the Native American Head, is a rare coin that was made from 1913-1938.
The Buffalo nickel sold for popular site Heritage Auctions for $105,000[/caption]
Featured on the coin’s reverse is a Buffalo while the obverse has the image of a Native American.
Popular site Heritage Auctions sold the coin for $105,000 due to a doubling error.
Double die, or doubling, is an error that happens during the coin’s strike process.
The error occurs when the metal pieces used to create the coin’s features strike multiple times to embed the image or text.
However, when the die strike is misaligned, letters, numbers and images on some coins get marked twice in slightly different places.
The 1916 date features a double die on the nine, the one, and the six.
If you have a Buffalo nickel in your collection, you can get it graded by a third party to see if yours sells for a high price.
A LITTLE HISTORY
The Buffalo nickel was designed by sculptor James Earle Fraser.
A Native American facing right on the coin’s obverse, with LIBERTY in small letters at the upper right edge, and the date at the lower left.
The reverse features a bison standing on a raised mound, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA and E PLURIBUS UNUM above, and FIVE CENTS below.
The obverse portrait was influenced by Fraser studying three Native American models.
Meanwhile, the reverse is a bison, popularly called a “buffalo,” at the Bronx Zoo, according to Professional Grading Coin services.
The coins were minted in Philadelphia but feature no mintmark.
MORE RARETIES
The U.S. Sun covers many coins that collectors pay top dollar for.
How coins are graded
Coins are graded on a scale of one to 70, with one being the poorest grade, and 70 being the most pristine example.
Numbers 60 to 70 are generally the most sought-after by collectors and are known as Mint State coins.
Pieces that fetch thousands at auction are commonly found in MS67, MS68, and MS69 conditions.
An MS-70 is near-impossible to find among older coins.
For example, a 1920 Lincoln cent coin sold for $26,000 at auction all because of another error.
This particular coin was struck on a dime blank instead of its original wheat cent.
Another coin known as the Morgan Dollar sold for $660,000 due to its colored history and low mintage.
The 1889-CC coin was the Carson City Mint and was closely tied to the political climate of the late 19th century.
This is where many of the coins had limited production runs.
