1885-S Morgan Dollar

The 1885-S Morgan Dollar was struck at the San Francisco Mint in 1885 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. 1,497,000

Background
Large numbers of the 1885-S were stored for years at the San Francisco Mint. We therefore find many bags that entered circulation via dealer networks ---making the 1885-S available in higher grades.

Collecting
The 1885-S is weakly struck when compared with previous issues from the San Francisco Mint. Look for dullness around the center of Miss Liberty and eagle's feathers. Lustrous examples command the premium here.

Prooflike coins exist from prooflike dies, sometimes on one side only. DMPLs exist and are very rare.

Historical Background in 1885
On January 20, 1885, L.A. Thompson patents the roller coaster. Thompson, La Marcus was an American inventor and businessman who was known as the "Father of the Gravity Ride" for his Switchback Railway at Coney Island, in New York City, the first gravity-powered roller coaster built in the United States.

On February 21, 1885, United States President Chester A. Arthur dedicates the Washington Monument. The Washington Monument is an obelisk near the west end of the National Mall in Washington, D.C., built to commemorate the first U.S. president, General George Washington. The monument, made of marble, granite, and bluestone gneiss, is both the world's tallest stone structure and the world's tallest obelisk, standing 555 feet 51⁄8 inches (169.294 m).

On March 4, 1885, Grover Cleveland succeeds Chester A. Arthur as President of the United States. Stephen Grover Cleveland (March 18, 1837 – June 24, 1908) was the 22nd and 24th President of the United States. Cleveland is the only president to serve two non-consecutive terms (1885–1889 and 1893–1897) and therefore is the only individual to be counted twice in the numbering of the presidents. He was the winner of the popular vote for president three times—in 1884, 1888, and 1892—and was the only Democrat elected to the presidency in the era of Republican political domination that lasted from 1861 to 1913.

Die Varieties
Several die varieties exist with special note to VAM-6.
 * VAM-1 Normal Die
 * VAM-1A Die Flake in Wreath
 * VAM-2 Doubled 5
 * VAM-2A Doubled 5, Far Date, Die Flake in Wreath
 * VAM-3 Doubled 8
 * VAM-4 Doubled 18
 * VAM-4A Doubled 18, Die Break Wreath
 * VAM-5 Far Date
 * VAM-5A Far Date, Die Chip Wing
 * VAM-6 S/S Extra serif at bottom of S mintmark (Top 100 Morgan Vam)
 * VAM-7 Double Date
 * VAM-7A Doubled Date, Die Flake Left Wreath
 * VAM-8 885 in Denticles
 * VAM-9 885 in Denticles, S/S (Top 100 Morgan Vam)
 * VAM-10 Doubled 885 Top