Mint mark

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Mint mark

A mint mark is an inscription on a coin

Coin

A coin is a piece of hard material, usually metal or a metallic material, usually in the shape of a Disk , and most often issued by a government....
indicating the mint

Mint (coin)

A mint is an industrial facility which manufacturing coins for currency.The history of mints correlates closely with the history of coins. One difference is that the history of the mint is normally related in a fashion that more closely ties to the political situation of an era....
where the coin was produced.

marks were first developed to locate a problem. If a coin was underweight, or overweight, the mint mark would immediately tell where the coin was minted, and the problem could be located and fixed. Another problem which could occur would be a dishonest mint official debasing

Debasement

Debasement is the practice of lowering the value of currency. It is particularly used in connection with commodity money such as gold or silver coins....
the coin, or putting less precious metal

Precious metal

A precious metal is a rare metallic chemical element of high economics value. Chemically, the precious metals are less reactivity than most elements, have high lustre , are softer or more ductility, and have higher melting points than other metals....
in the coin than specified.

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Encyclopedia

A mint mark is an inscription on a coin

Coin

A coin is a piece of hard material, usually metal or a metallic material, usually in the shape of a Disk , and most often issued by a government....
indicating the mint

Mint (coin)

History

Mint marks were first developed to locate a problem. If a coin was underweight, or overweight, the mint mark would immediately tell where the coin was minted, and the problem could be located and fixed. Another problem which could occur would be a dishonest mint official debasing

Debasement

Debasement is the practice of lowering the value of currency. It is particularly used in connection with commodity money such as gold or silver coins....
the coin, or putting less precious metal

Precious metal

Ancient Greece

The term Ancient Greece refers to the period of History of Greece lasting from the Greek Dark Ages ca. 1100 BC and the Dorian invasion, to 146 BC and the Roman Republic conquest of Greece after the Battle of Corinth ....
, and named the Magistrate

Magistrate

A magistrate is a judicial officer; in ancient Rome, the word magistratus denoted one of the highest government officers with judicial and executive powers....
in charge of producing that coin. Debasing a coin, or otherwise tampering with it, was a very serious crime, often punishable by death in many civilizations. For example, in 1649, the directors of the Spanish

Spain

Spain or the Kingdom of Spain , is a country located in Southern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula.The Spanish constitution does not establish any official denomination of the country, even though Espa?a , Estado espa?ol and Naci?n espa?ola are used interchangeably....
colonial American Mint at Potosi

Potosi

Potos? or Potosi may refer to:*Bolivia** Potos?, a city, an important mining spot during the Spanish conquest*** Potosi , a German Flying P-Liner sailing ship named after this place...
, in what is today Bolivia

Bolivia

The Republic of Bolivia , named after Sim?n Bol?var, is a landlocked country in central South America. It is bordered by Brazil on the north and east, Paraguay and Argentina on the south, and Chile and Peru on the west....
, were condemned to death for seriously debasing the coinage. The initials of the assayer

Assayer

An assayer is a person who tests ores and minerals and analyzes them to determine their composition and value. They may use spectrograph, chemical solutions, and chemical or laboratory equipment, such as furnaces, Beaker s, graduated cylinder, pipettes, and crucibles....
as well as the mint mark were immediate identifiers when the coins were inspected.

Mint marks in Numismatics
Numismatics

Numismatics is the study or collection of currency, including coins, tokens, paper money, and related objects. While numismatists are often characterized as students or collectors of coins, the discipline also includes a much larger study of payment-media used to resolve debts and the exchange of Good s....

In the 19th century, numismatists did not generally collect coins according to mint mark; rather, they attempted to obtain date sets of coins. A turnaround began after 1893, when A. G. Heaton

A. G. Heaton

Augustus Goodyear Heaton was an American artist, author and leading numismatist. He is best known for his painting The Recall of Columbus and among coin collectors for writing A Treatise on Coinage of the United States Branch Mints, which introduced numismatists to mint marks....
's "A Treatise on Coinage of the United States Branch Mints" was published. Heaton cited example after example of mint-marked coins that were much scarcer than Philadelphia products and that should bring high premiums. When the United States

United States

The United States of America is a Federal government constitutional republic comprising U.S. state and a federal district. The country is situated mostly in central North America, where its Contiguous United States and Washington, D.C., the Capital districts and territories, lie between the Pacific Ocean and Atlantic Oceans, Borders of the U...
abandoned silver

Silver

Silver is a chemical element with the chemical symbol Ag and atomic number 47. A soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it has the highest electrical conductivity of any element and the highest thermal conductivity of any metal....
coinage in 1964, mint marks were removed from the new copper

Copper

Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu and atomic number 29.It is a ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity....
-nickel

Nickel

Nickel is a chemical element, with the chemical symbol Ni and atomic number 28. It is a silvery-white lustrous metal with a slight golden tinge....
coins in the belief that it would reduce the removal of coins from circulation by collectors. The silver coins quickly disappeared from circulation, and it was feared that if collectors saved too many of the new coins, there would be a serious shortage of coinage. Mint marks were returned to United States coins in 1968.

Examples

Examples of mint marks in United States coinage

United States coinage

United States coinage was first minted by the new republic in 1792. New coins have been produced every year since then and they make up a valuable aspect of the United States United States currency....
include P for the Philadelphia Mint

Philadelphia Mint

The Philadelphia Mint was created from the need to establish a national identity and the needs of commerce in the United States. This led the Founding Fathers of the United States to make an establishment of a continental national mint a main priority after the ratification of the Constitution of the United States....
, D for the Denver Mint

Denver Mint

The Denver Mint is a branch of the United States Mint established in 1862 that is today operational and produces coins for circulation, as well as mint sets and commemorative coins....
, S for the San Francisco Mint

San Francisco Mint

The San Francisco Mint is a branch mint of the United States Mint, and was opened in 1854 to serve the gold mines of the California Gold Rush. It quickly outgrew its first building and moved into a new one in 1874....
, and W for the West Point Mint

West Point Mint

The West Point Mint Facility was erected in 1937, near the U.S. Military Academy in West Point, New York. Originally the West Point Bullion Depository, it gained official status as a branch mint of the United States Mint on March 31, 1988....
. In the past, CC for the Carson City Mint

Carson City Mint

Carson City Mint was a branch mint of the United States Mint in Carson City, Nevada. Built at the peak of the silver boom, 50 issues of silver coins and 57 issues of gold coins minted here between 1870 and 1893 bore the "CC" mint mark....
, C for the Charlotte Mint

Charlotte Mint

The Charlotte Mint was a branch of the United States Mint that came into existence on March 3, 1835 during the Carolina Gold Rush. The first gold mine in the United States was established in North Carolina at the Reed Gold Mine....
, D for the Dahlonega Mint

Dahlonega Mint

The Dahlonega Mint was a branch of the United States Mint in Dahlonega, Georiga. Coins produced at the Dahlonega Mint bear the "D" mintmark. That mintmark is used today by the Denver Mint, which opened many years after the Dahlonega Mint closed....
, and O for the New Orleans Mint

New Orleans Mint

The New Orleans Mint operated in New Orleans, Louisiana, Louisiana, as a branch Mint of the United States Mint from 1838 to 1861 and from 1879 to 1909....
were used. Most coins of the Philadelphia Mint earlier than 1980 are unmarked. Currently the Lincoln cent

Lincoln cent

The Lincoln cent is the current cent . It was adopted in 1909, replacing the Indian Head cent. Its obverse and reverse, featuring a bust of Abraham Lincoln , has been in continuous usage....
is the only coin that does not show a "P" when struck at the Philadelphia mint. Generally modern "S" and "W" coins do not circulate, being mostly produced as bullion, commemorative

Commemorative

Commemorative may refer to:*Commemorative coin*Commemorative issue - a special edition of a book, magazine, or other item released around, or in memory of, a special event or occurrence....
, or proof coinage

Proof coinage

Proof coinage means special early samples of a coin issue, historically made for checking the die s and for archival purposes, but nowadays often struck in greater numbers specially for coin Collecting ....
.

Although the US and several other countries use the initial letter of the city for its mint marks, this practice is not universal. For instance, Germany used A for Berlin, D for Munich, E for Muldenhutten, F for Stuttgart, G for Karlsruhe and J for Hamburg.

Many mints of the world commonly use a Privy mark

Privy mark

A privy mark was originally a small mark or differentiation in the design of a coin for the purpose of identifying the mint , moneyer, or some other aspect of the coin's production or origin, for control purposes....
, which is a symbol unique to each mint. The Royal Canadian Mint

Royal Canadian Mint

The Royal Canadian Mint produces all of Canada's circulation coins, and manufactures circulation coins on behalf of other nations. The mint also designs and manufactures: collector coins; gold, silver, palladium, and platinum bullion coins; customized medals, token s, trade dollar watches, and, for a brief time, high end jewellery featurin...
commonly uses a maple leaf

Maple leaf

File:Maple leaf Fcb981.JPGThe maple leaf is the characteristic leaf of the maple tree, and is one of the most widely recognized National symbols of Canada....
privy mark. The Monnaie de Paris

Monnaie de Paris

File:Monnaie_de_Paris.jpgFile:Monnaie_de_Paris_facade.jpgThe Monnaie de Paris or, more administratively speaking, the "Direction of Coins and Medals", is an administration of the French government charged with issuing coins as well as producing medals and other similar items....
uses many different privy marks to denote each branch mint, including a torch

Torch

Originally, a torch was a portable source of fire used as a source of light, usually a rod-shaped piece of wood with a rag soaked in pitch and/or some other flammable material wrapped around one end....
, cornucopia

Cornucopia

The cornucopia is a symbol of food and abundance dating back to the 5th century BC, also referred to as horn of plenty, Horn of Amalthea, and harvest cone....
, or thunderbolt

Thunderbolt

A thunderbolt is a traditional expression for a discharge of lightning or a symbolic representation thereof. In its original usage the word may also have been a description of meteors, although this is not currently the case....
.

Many Islamic coins bear an inscription telling which mint produced the coin. This inscription is often the name of the city where the coin was minted spelled out in Arabic script.

Mint mark

History

Examples

External links