1879-S Morgan Dollar

The 1879-S Morgan Dollar was struck at the San Francisco Mint in 1879 and is part of the Morgan Dollar series.

Specifications

 * Designer: George T. Morgan
 * Obverse Design: Lady Liberty
 * Reverse Design: Eagle holding arrows and olive branch
 * Edge: Reeded
 * Weight: 26.73 grams
 * Diameter: 38.1 millimeters
 * Composition: Silver (90%), Copper (10%)
 * Mintage: Circulation Strikes: est. 8,700,000

Background
The 1879-S was struck in good numbers ---only to be out-done by the San Francisco Mint in that year. At a mintage of over 8 million, the 1879-S is well-supplied. For the novice Morgan Dollar collector, the 1879-S is a good place to start because it is generally available and accessible.

Collecting
The 1879-S can be found in all mint states and reasonably priced in all grades. These coins are generally attractive, with good luster, but can appear to be weakly-struck coins due to the flat eagle's breast on the reverse. Look for detail in the wreath and feathers as a key to this year.

Prooflike coins are common, though typically on one side only. Two sided prooflikes do exist, are treasured by collectors, and are well worth the effort of locating.

Historical Background in 1879
On May 26, 1879, Russia and the United Kingdom sign the Treaty of Gandamak, establishing an Afghan state. Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked sovereign state located in the centre of Asia, forming part of South Asia, Central Asia and Western Asia.

On May 30, 1879, New York City's Gilmore's Garden is renamed Madison Square Garden by William Henry Vanderbilt, and is opened to the public at 26th Street and Madison Avenue. Madison Square Garden was an arena in New York City located at East 26th Street and Madison Avenue in Manhattan. The first venue to use that name, it had a seating capacity of 10,000 spectators. It operated from 1879 to 1890, when it was replaced with a new building on the same site.

On December 31, 1879, Thomas Edison demonstrates incandescent lighting to the public for the first time in Menlo Park, New Jersey. The incandescent light bulb produces light by heating a filament wire to a high temperature until it glows. The hot filament is protected from oxidation in the air with a glass enclosure that is filled with inert gas or evacuated.

Die Varieties
The 1879-S comes in two major varieties ---the reverse of 1878 and the reverse of 1879. The reverse of 1878 has a flat eagle's breast and parallel feathers on the top arrow. The reverse of 1879 is the far more rare of the two with a mintage of only 500,000. While the reverse of 1879 has a mintage of 8,600,000. Pieces of the first variety are difficult to find in Mint State while the second major variety is well-supplied in Mint State.

Following are the Van Allen and Mallis (VAM) varieties:

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1879-S "Reverse of the 1878" Various VAMs

 * VAM-4 Rev.'78, Parallel Arrow Feather, Die Rust Dots on Wing Next to Leg
 * VAM-5 Rev.'78, Parallel Arrow Feather, Broken R (Doesn't Exist) Probably became VAM-39 after engraved wing feather was described
 * VAM-6 Rev.'78, Parallel Arrow Feather, TIUST, Engraved Wing Feather
 * VAM-7 S/S Up (Doesn’t Exist) Probably became VAM 43
 * VAM-7A S/S Up (Doesn’t Exist) Probably became VAM 39
 * VAM-8 Doubled 9 (Doesn’t Exist)
 * VAM-10 (Doesn’t Exist) Probably became VAM-42
 * VAM-9 Rev.'78, Parallel Arrow Feather, Doubled 9, Engraved Wing Feather from 1878 S
 * VAM-23 Rev.'78, Parallel Arrow Feather, Die Rust Dots on Wing Next to Leg
 * VAM-24 Rev.'78, Parallel Arrow Feather, Doubled 9 (Doesn't exist - probably became VAM-43, 50, or 51 after engraved wing feather was described.)
 * VAM-25 Rev.'78, Parallel Arrow Feather, Doubled 7, Die Rust Dots on Wing Next to Leg
 * VAM-34 Rev.'78, Parallel Arrow Feather, Engraved Wing Feather
 * VAM-34A Rev.'78, Parallel Arrow Feather, Engraved Wing Feather, polished down reverse
 * VAM-34B Rev.'78, Parallel Arrow Feather, Engraved Wing Feather with polished initial
 * VAM-35 Rev.'78, Parallel Arrow Feather, Doubled 9, Engraved Wing Feather
 * VAM-39 Rev.'78, Parallel Arrow Feather, Engraved Wing Feather
 * VAM-42 Rev.'78, Parallel Arrow Feather, Doubled 79, Engraved Wing Feather
 * VAM-43 Rev.'78, Parallel Arrow Feather, Doubled Date, Engraved Wing Feather
 * VAM-46 Rev.'78, Parallel Arrow Feather, TIUST, Doubled 79, Engraved Wing Feather
 * VAM-50 Rev.'78, Parallel Arrow Feather, Doubled 7 Top, Engraved Wing Feather
 * VAM-51 Rev.'78, Parallel Arrow Feather, Tripled Stars, Doubled 9 & Motto, Engraved Wing Feather
 * VAM-52 Rev.'78, Parallel Arrow Feather,Doubled 7, Engraved Wing Feather
 * VAM-56 Rev.'78, Parallel Arrow Feather, Tripled Stars, Die Rust Spots on Wing Next to Leg
 * VAM-66 Rev.'78, Parallel Arrow Feather, Doubled 187, Die Rust Dots on Wing Next to Leg
 * VAM-67 Rev.'78, Parallel Arrow Feather, Doubled 18-9 & Tripled/Quadrupled Stars
 * VAM-77 Rev.'78, Parallel Arrow Feather, Engraved Wing Feather from 1878 S, 9 Upper Tailfeathers
 * VAM-77A Rev.'78, Parallel Arrow Feather, Engraved Wing Feather from 1878 S, 8 Upper Tailfeathers

1879-S Reverse of 1879, Slanted Arrow Feather, Short Nock

 * VAM-1 Normal Die, Closed 9
 * VAM-1A Polished 8
 * VAM-1B Hair Ribbon
 * VAM-1C Pitted Face
 * VAM-1D Clashed st
 * VAM-1E Acid treated Obverse Die
 * VAM-1F Polished 8, Cootie Impression on Jaw
 * VAM-1F1 Polished 8, Cootie Impression on Jaw
 * VAM-1F2 Cootie Impression on Jaw, Clashed Obverse st
 * VAM-2 Open 9
 * VAM-3 Doubled 9
 * VAM-3A Doubled 9, S Tilted Left, Die Chips Below 18 (Eliminated, became VAM-73)
 * VAM-11 S/S Left
 * VAM-11A S/S Left, Die File Line Tail Feathers (Eliminated, became VAM-12A)
 * VAM-12 S/S Left
 * VAM-12A S/S Left, Die File Line Tail Feathers
 * VAM-13 S/S Right
 * VAM-14 S/S Middle
 * VAM-15 Double 18 and S/S
 * VAM-16 Double 9
 * VAM-16A Double 9, Gouge in Bow
 * VAM-16B Doubled 9, Polished Reverse
 * VAM-17 Doubled Date and S/S
 * VAM-18 Doubled Date
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 * VAM-18A Doubled Date, S Tilted Left, Obverse Polishing Lines
 * VAM-19 S/S Tilted Left
 * VAM-20 Doubled 18
 * VAM-21 Doubled Date, S/S High
 * VAM-22 Doubled Date
 * VAM-26 Doubled 879, Thread-Like Impression Eye
 * VAM-27 Doubled Date
 * VAM-28 Doubled 1-9
 * VAM-29 Doubled 9 and Right Obverse
 * VAM-30 S/S Far Left
 * VAM-31 Doubled 879, S Set Left
 * VAM-32 Doubled 9
 * VAM-33 Doubled 18-9, S Set Right
 * VAM-36 Polished 8, Cootie Impression on Jaw, S/S Tilted Left and Set Left
 * VAM-37 S/S Line
 * VAM-38 Doubled 879
 * VAM-40 Doubled 18-9
 * VAM-41 Doubled Stars and Date
 * VAM-44 Possible 7 in Denticles, Doubled 87, Sextupled Stars
 * VAM-45 (Privately made) S/S Bar Top Loop, Rough Left Wreath
 * VAM-47 Doubled Date, Sextupled Stars, Doubled Right Reverse
 * VAM-48 Doubled Date, Tripled Stars & Motto
 * VAM-48A Doubled Date, Tripled Stars & Motto, Beauty Mark Die Chip
 * VAM-49 Doubled Date, S/S Far Right
 * VAM-53 Doubled 87, S/S Right
 * VAM-54 Doubled 9, S/S Right
 * VAM-55 Doubled 87
 * VAM-57 Open 9, Over Polished Wreath Bow
 * VAM-58 Doubled Top Reverse
 * VAM-59 Doubled 879, S/S Lower Loop Tilted Left
 * VAM-60 Quadrupled Stars & Date, Doubled Lower Reverse
 * VAM-61 Doubled 8, Sextupled Stars, Tripled Left Wreath
 * VAM-62 Doubled Profile, Over Polished Lower Reverse
 * VAM-63 Doubled Lower Hair
 * VAM-64 Doubled 87
 * VAM-65 Open 9, Gouge in Bow
 * VAM-68 Doubled 7, S/S Middle
 * VAM-69 Doubled Date & Stars, S Tilted Left
 * VAM-70 Open 9, Overpolished Eagle's Head
 * VAM-71 S Set Right, Over Polished Reverse
 * VAM-72 Doubled date and Right Reverse
 * VAM-73 Doubled 18, S Tilted Left, Die Chips Below 18
 * VAM-74 Engraved Tailfeather, Over Polished Reverse
 * VAM-75 Doubled Profile, Bulging Stars, Gouge in Bow, Over Polished Reverse.
 * VAM-76 Doubled/Quadrupled 187 & Stars
 * VAM-76A Doubled/Quadrupled 187 & Stars, Die Break below 9
 * VAM-78
 * VAM-79 Cootie Impression on Jaw, S Tilted Left
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