This article presents photos of 2016-S Native American $1 Coins and a color-coded graphic that illustrates its three finishes.
2016 American $1 Coin and Currency Sets pair an exclusive 2016 Enhanced Uncirculated Native American $1 Coin from the U.S. Mint in San Francisco with an uncirculated Series 2013 $1 note designated for one the 12 Federal Reserve Banks.
The coin is a solid addition to collections and it can be a great seller for flippers. It’s exclusive to the set — the main draw in spending $14.95 to get one, and higher graded examples are pulling large chunks of change. August auctions of the dollar have realized from around $22 to $36 for SP69s and from around $97 to $190 for SP70s.
These dollars are struck by dies that had their details wire-brushed for brilliance and laser-frosted for contrast. This graphic illustrates the various resulting finishes:
In the die production stage, the fields and artwork are wire brushed. This step results in a base finish that is bright but without all the polished characteristics of a proof coin. A laser then passes over preprogrammed design elements and at different intensities to create two contrasting frost levels. The color key in the graphic above and listed below describes the three treatments:
- Gray for areas of wire brushing,
- Orange for regions of standard laser frosting, and
- Violet for areas of light-plus laser frosting.
This year’s enhanced uncirculated dollar is the third issue from the series of Native American $1 Coins, with the first in 2014 from the Denver Mint and the second in 2015 from the West Point Mint. Both were released only within their respective year’s American $1 Coin and Currency Sets.
Native American dollars feature annually changing reverses. This year’s design is the eighth in the series, which commemorates the contributions to the United States by Native American tribes and individuals.
The San Francisco’s mint mark, ‘S’, is found on the edge of the coin, along with the year ‘2016’ and the motto ‘E PLURIBUS UNUM’.
Sales of the 2016 American $1 Coin and Currency Set are at 37,771 as of Aug. 14, representing 50.4% of the allotted 75,000. The U.S. Mint is selling them online, right here. Place phone orders using the agency’s toll-free number at 1-800-USA-MINT (872-6468).
