US Liberty Head V Nickel 1883 to 1913

US Liberty Head V Nickel 1883 to 1913

Most Liberty, or 'V', nickels catalog at about $3 US dollars in worn condition. The one in the picture is uncirculated, with no wear and lots of creamy, frosty mint luster. It catalogs around $80. You can see what a difference condition makes to coin collectors. They are willing to pay big money for coins in uncirculated condition. Here are some typical catalog values for common-date liberty V nickels:

V NICKELS (most dates, see below):
worn: $3 US dollars approximate catalog value
average circulated: $8
well preserved: $30
fully uncirculated: $80

Be sure you understand what 'catalog' means. Look up the meaning on our Terminology page.

Most V nickels have common dates and the catalog values above apply. The 'key dates' are 1885, 1886, and 1912S. Here are their catalog values in average circulated condition, with a few 'semi-keys' included:

1883: $50 average circulated with cents (see below)
1884: $50 average circulated
1885: $1000
1886: $500
1887: $35
1888: $120
1889 to 1893: $40
1894: $150
1895: $50
1896: $50
1912S: $450

Use our Terminology page to understand what 'catalog value' means.

There is an important minting variety for Lib nickels: the 1883 no cents variety. When the coins were first minted in 1883, the reverse design omitted the word 'cents.' Apparently there was confusion about the value of the coin. Was it 5 dollars or 5 cents? The Mint added 'cents' during the year 1883. It turns out that the original no cents variety is much more common than the with cents variety. If you have an 1883 coin without the 'cents' on the reverse, it is very common and worth quite a bit less than the common coins outlined above. The 1883 with cents variety catalogs about $50 in average circulated condition.

Sometimes you see the no cents variety gold plated. It's to make believe it is a 5 dollar coin, not a 5 cent coin. These coins carry the handle 'racketeer nickels.'

Too bad you don't have a 1913 V nickel. There are only 5 of those known to exist. The last one sold at auction for (are you ready?) $1,840,000.

Coin: 424, Genre: United States, Timeline: World
Created (yyyymm): 200903, Last review: 202312
Appearance: Normal round coin Metallic gray Letters: Latin
Years: sort: 1883, filter: 1883 to 1913
Image: us_liberty_nickel.jpg

Tags: fern wreath tiera headed libertatis heads crowns garland liberta reif bough oneheaded libera liberdad leafed liafy crowned nickle leaves leavs foliage libertao pennys leaf nickels head liberty tiarra cent wreathed ferns peny libertas tiara five wreth boughs nickel rief pennies liberate crown reef nikel libertad leave liber ivy leaved leafs wreah liberte greenery wreaths wreathe cents crowning penny wreat libertate bush leafe nichel leafy

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