Mint: San Francisco |
Mintage: 13,820,000 |
Catalog: KM-140 |
Obverse Designer: Adolph A. Weinman |
Reverse Designer: Adolph A. Weinman |
Composition: Silver |
Fineness: 0.9000 |
Weight: 2.5000g |
ASW: 0.0723oz |
Melt Value: $1.68 (8/17/2013) |
Diameter: 17.8mm |
Edge: Reeded |
The 1920-S is a highly respected condition rarity among early Mercury dimes. Harold Kritzman, the person who 'discovered' and promoted Full Bands as an indicator of completeness of strike in the Mercury dime series, believed the 1920-S to be the 'toughest condition and strike rarity of the Mercury Dime series.'
Lange mentions in his 2005 Complete Guide: 'Ones having both full bands and a sharp date are indeed rare, since numeral 0 is often indistinct.'
Series specialists will appreciate this Kritzman quote: 'Only a true full strike 1918-D in MS67, 100% FSB, should one ever be certified as such, would be considered of equal rarity to this 1920-S.'