Silver Dollars

A mention of the term silver dollar anywhere is likely to rouse some excitement especially where there are coin collectors. These coins have been in use in the United States for a long time. Initially they were meant to be part of the mainstream currency but today they are mainly used as a way of paying tribute to many Americans and special events in American history. Currently, the US treasury is in the process of making a presidential dollar set to honor past presidents with new coins being minted every few months.

These are valued at one dollar each and apart from the aesthetic value many like to use them for, they can also be used as currency. The presidential silver dollars have a depiction of the president they honor on the obverse side and the Statue of Liberty on the reverse side. Once the final coin is released, these coins will make a full a set of 38. Unlike other silver dollars, the presidential set offers no great value since they are currently largely available and can even be acquired in advance from the US Treasury. Coin collectors can however enjoy bringing the whole set together since these are inexpensive.

Apart from the presidential set currently being minted, there are a variety of older silver dollars, some of which date as far back as 1794. These usually have greater value since they are rare and back then, coins were actually made with a very high percentage of silver. These are therefore expensive because of the mere silver content they contain. Such coins are usually sort after by coin collectors from all over the world and currently even some investors. These precious metals rarely depreciate even in hard economic times but instead are a safe store of wealth that gains value by the day.

One of the most popular one is the Morgan silver dollar which was minted between 1878 and 1904 and again in 1921. These were the first actually used as currency but were at one time melted making them a very rare find. Their value appreciates by the year and depending on where they were minted, they can fetch as much as 0 currently. In recent years the price of silver has increased by almost three fold and this makes the Morgan silver coins an investment given that they contain large amounts of the precious metal (around 24 grams per coin).

The most popular of the Morgan silver dollars are those that were minted in Carson City, Nevada where only 800 are believed to have been produced. These will therefore fetch a considerably larger amount since they are more rare compared to the others. These coins are also known to be quite detailed and one in mint condition has a shimmer that can reflect like a mirror. If you come across a silver dollar, hold on to it if you love collecting coins or just keep it as a future investment.