There’s a “V” in the word “Trust” on My Peace Dollar – Is it Rare?
Peace silver dollars are among the most widely traded silver dollars in the market today. These highly desirable U.S. coins were issued from 1921 – 1935, are 90% silver and are among the most affordable vintage coins in the market. While most of these coins are common date and trade for closer to their silver value, especially those produced from 1922 – 1926, there are a handful that are considered better date or low mintage. Most notably, the 1921 and 1928
Philadelphia issued silver dollars are considered key date coins while the 1934-s in better condition also trades at a premium. Additionally, many of these coins, when in high-end condition and certified by a leading third-party grading service will sell at a premium.
In going through your collection, you may have come across a Peace dollar and noticed that the letter “U” in the word “Trust” has been replaced with a “V.”
Unless you’re an avid collector and are familiar with these coins, you may be under the assumption that you have an error or variety coin. While we personally don’t specialize in error coins, there are a few that we regularly trade in and that are always of interest to us, including a no “D” 1922 wheat penny, a 1955 double die Lincoln cent, a 1942/41 Mercury dime and a 1937-d 3 legged buffalo.
Unfortunately, the letter “V” was used in lieu of a “U” in the word “Trust” on all Peace silver dollars produced. Why would the U.S. Mint make what appears to be a mistake on the production or issuance of all these coins? You might be surprised to learn that this was intentional. It is part of our history and has to do with the defeat or victory of Germany in World War I. For those history buffs out there, World War I was fought from 1914 – 1918, but the U.S. didn’t enter the war until 1917.
The defeat of Germany was considered a major victory and at the time, patriotism abounded. To commemorate the victory, the U.S. Mint substituted the letter “U” for a “V.” While
we’ve had plenty of other commemorative coins issued throughout the history of the U.S. Mint, this coin stands alone in that it’s a constant reminder of our country’s history and the hard battle won.
You may have just learned that you don’t have an error coin simply due to the use of the letter “V,” but it’s possible that you may still have an error Peace dollar in your possession.
Errors to look out for are double dies, or the doubling of letters and numbers, off-center strikes (these are coins that shifted in the collar when struck) and strike through errors, which simply means that the coin was struck through some other type of material or substance, such as cloth, a staple or plastic.
We hope that this helps to clear up some misconceptions regarding what appears to be an error with Peace silver dollars. Regardless of whether the Peace dollar you have in your possession is an error or not, it’s still a highly desirable coin and one that you can be proud of.
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