The most popular design for the ten cent denomination is the Mercury Dime, which was produced from 1916 to 1945. During this time period mintages varied widely from just a few hundred thousand for the well known key date to more than 200 million for some years. Assembling an a collection for each date and mint mark within the series is an ambitious but approachable goal for collectors.
The 1945 Mercury Dime is unique in the fact that it is the last year of production for the Mercury Dime series. This ended the 30-year production of arguably the nation's most beautiful dime. Additional Info: 1945 was the last year the Mercury or Liberty head dime was produced. This coin is 90% silver. These coins were minted at 3 locations, but the (p) Philadelphia mint issued some 62% of all dimes this year making these the most abundant. When buying or selling Mercury Dimes. Mercury dimes are also known as Winged Liberty Head dimes. The US minted the 1945 dime with no mint mark and also the 1945 D dime and 1945 S dime. The mint mark, when present, can be found on. May 20, 2020 At any rate, 1945 Philadelphia Mercury dimes with FB designation are decidedly difficult to locate. MS63FB and 64FB specimens trade for around $6,000 and $9,000, respectively. PCGS has graded only. Mercury Dime 1940-1945 Displaying 1 to 25 ( of 136 products ) Sort By Position Name Price Unit of Measure Date, Mint Mark: Grade Grade Note.
Designed by Adolph A. Weinman, the obverse of the coin features a portrait of Liberty facing left. She wears a winged cap, which led to the popular moniker for the series. It is often noted that the Roman god Mercury actually had wings on his feet. The obverse inscriptions are “Liberty”, “In God We Trust”, and the date. On the reverse is a Roman fasces, which consists of sticks bound around an axe, and an olive branch. The inscriptions are “United States of America”, “One Dime”, and “E Pluribus Unum”.
For the Mercury Dime series:
1945 Mercury Dime W
- There are a total of 77 different date and mint mark combinations, including coins struck at the Philadelphia, Denver, and San Francisco Mints.
- Across all issues of the series, there were 2,676,523,880 coins produced. This is more than five times the production of the previous Barber Dime series, which had roughly the same number of issues.
- The peak mintage occurred with the 1944 Mercury Dime, with 231,410,000 coins struck at the Philadelphia Mint.
- The lowest mintage issue and famous key date is the 1916-D Mercury Dime. There were a scant 264,000 pieces minted and most were well circulated before being saved by collectors.
- The average mintage across all issues is 34,760,050.
| 1916 | 22,180,080 |
| 1916-D | 264,000 |
| 1916-S | 10,450,000 |
| 1917 | 55,230,000 |
| 1917-D | 9,402,000 |
| 1917-S | 27,330,000 |
| 1918 | 26,680,000 |
| 1918-D | 22,674,800 |
| 1918-S | 19,300,000 |
| 1919 | 35,740,000 |
| 1919-D | 9,939,000 |
| 1919-S | 8,850,000 |
| 1920 | 59,030,000 |
| 1920-D | 19,171,000 |
| 1920-S | 13,820,000 |
| 1921 | 1,230,000 |
| 1921-D | 1,080,000 |
| 1923 | 50,130,000 |
| 1923-S | 6,440,000 |
| 1924 | 24,010,000 |
| 1924-D | 6,810,000 |
| 1924-S | 7,120,000 |
| 1925 | 25,610,000 |
| 1925-D | 5,117,000 |
| 1925-S | 5,850,000 |
| 1926 | 32,160,000 |
| 1926-D | 6,828,000 |
| 1926-S | 1,520,000 |
| 1927 | 28,080,000 |
| 1927-D | 4,812,000 |
| 1927-S | 4,770,000 |
| 1928 | 19,480,000 |
| 1928-D | 4,161,000 |
| 1928-S | 7,400,000 |
| 1929 | 25,970,000 |
| 1929-D | 5,034,000 |
| 1929-S | 4,730,000 |
| 1930 | 6,770,000 |
| 1930-S | 1,843,000 |
| 1931 | 3,150,000 |
| 1931-D | 1,260,000 |
| 1931-S | 1,800,000 |
| 1934 | 24,080,000 |
| 1934-D | 6,772,000 |
| 1935 | 58,830,000 |
| 1935-D | 10,477,000 |
| 1935-S | 15,840,000 |
| 1936 | 87,500,000 |
| 1936-D | 16,132,000 |
| 1936-S | 9,210,000 |
| 1937 | 56,860,000 |
| 1937-D | 14,146,000 |
| 1937-S | 9,740,000 |
| 1938 | 22,190,000 |
| 1938-D | 5,537,000 |
| 1938-S | 8,090,000 |
| 1939 | 67,740,000 |
| 1939-D | 24,394,000 |
| 1939-S | 10,540,000 |
| 1940 | 65,350,000 |
| 1940-D | 21,198,000 |
| 1940-S | 21,560,000 |
| 1941 | 175,090,000 |
| 1941-D | 45,634,000 |
| 1941-S | 43,090,000 |
| 1942 | 205,410,000 |
| 1942-D | 60,740,000 |
| 1942-S | 49,300,000 |
| 1943 | 191,710,000 |
| 1943-D | 71,949,000 |
| 1943-S | 60,400,000 |
| 1944 | 231,410,000 |
| 1944-D | 62,224,000 |
| 1944-S | 49,490,000 |
| 1945 | 159,130,000 |
| 1945-D | 40,245,000 |
| 1945-S | 41,290,000 |
Source: MercuryDime.net
Silver Mercury Dimes were introduced by the United States Mint in 1916 and were struck annually until 1945 (with the exception of three years). The silver coins are also known as Winged Liberty Head Dimes which is probably a more accurate title even if most coin enthusiasts do not routinely use it.
The U.S. Mint struck each Mercury Dime from 90% silver with 0.0723 ounces of the precious metal. (Look to the right column to calculate coin melt values based on the latest price of silver.) The dimes have a total weight of 2.5 grams. As seen on the coin image, Liberty is showcased on the obverse while the reverse has Roman fasces in front of an olive branch.
Prior to the release of the 1916 dime, the U.S. Mint had been striking the Barber Dime for twenty five years. The older dime was named after its designer, United States Mint chief engraver Charles E. Barber. Barber had been allowed to redesign the dime in 1892 after Congressional legislation was introduced allowing coin designs to change after twenty-five years of use.
Historical Mercury Dime Silver Coin Melt Values
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The design of the Barber Dime was not widely accepted by the public. When another twenty-five years had passed, many were eager to see it replaced. With the help of the United States Commission of Fine Arts (CFA), noted sculptor Adolph A. Weinman was selected along with two other artists to submit dime design proposals.
Weinman’s work was not only accepted for the new dime, but an additional Weinman design was also chosen to be used on the half dollar coin. Both proved extremely popular with the public and are considered to be among of the most beautiful coins ever produced by the U.S. Mint.
The obverse of the dime contains an image of a young mythical figure of Liberty complete with a Phrygian cap. The cap is adorned with wings meant to symbolize freedom of thought. However, many in the public misinterpreted the design and thought it was meant to represent the Roman god Mercury, thus resulting in the coin being known as a Mercury Dime.
Shown on the reverse of the dime is an image of a fasces (bundle of sticks with an ax blade emerging from them). Wrapping around the fasces is an olive branch. The design was meant to symbolize America’s interest in peace while still prepared for war.
Owing to its widely accepted designs, many coin enthusiasts collect Mercury Dimes which are relatively affordable and easy to obtain in lower grade levels. The key strike of the series is the 1916-D since just 264,000 pieces were struck.
Silver Dimes Value Chart
Mercury Dimes with no real numismatic value are also sought after for their silver content owing to the 0.0723 ounces in each piece.