Today, there are dozens of varieties that are popular with collectors – but none of them hold a flame to the buffalo nickel. Judge the surface of the cheek to match surrounding areas. Therefore, before you start celebrating your early retirement with your new found fortune, have the coin authenticated by a reputable coin dealer or third party grading service. Computed from dealer's price lists with various mark-up factors figured in. These are Indian head nickels to look for in your coin collection. Check out our rare buffalo nickels selection for the very best in unique or custom, handmade pieces from our coins & money shops. Next comparing your coin to images to judge and determine its condition and recognize its "grade". Beginning with identifying important dates and mintmarks. If identity of date is uncertain the coin is falling below the Good grade and value. With a mintage of 1,437,000 coins, many of them have survived and are available to collectors today. A very popular series with collectors, each coin is evaluated closely to identify its full potential. Contour remains on the hip with a noticeable raise area defined. A few buffalo nickels are somewhat rare but many others are fairly common and sell for a couple of dollars in moderately worn condition. Along the upper shoulder where the fur meets the back remains with a luster indicating a mint state coin. Closest protection to the date is the rim below and knot in hair braid above. Find great deals on eBay for rare buffalo nickels. The coin’s obverse is dominated by the right-facing profile image of a Native American Indian. Flatness extends upward to the part in the hair. Helping define the grade is areas of flatness are small and disconnected. A small connection of the buffalo's head to the rim is noted. Overall a buffalo nickel in Good grade remains with a bold outline of both the Indian and buffalo. The value table shows the importance of the key elements to identify. In 1913 the U.S. Mint retired the Liberty Head nickel (or "V" nickel) design and started making the Buffalo nickel. A contour remains with no flat area connecting with the hair left of the eye. View the hair along the parting line from his forehead to bow holding the feathers. The shoulder of the Indian is raised and date is on top, placing it as one of the highest areas on the surface. In the hip area, any wear causes a flattening of the profile and smoothness to the metal. Reverse: Features Identifying Mint State Grade: High areas of the buffalo's fur are inspected to detect any wear. Most buffalo nickels have been removed from circulation (by collectors, etc), and therefore it is very rare indeed to find a buffalo nickel in circulation. Reverse: Features Identifying the Good Grade: A once fully profiled buffalo is now flat. Coin collecting remains a popular hobby today. Shop with confidence. A distinct line remains separating the buffalo's back with the line of fur along the upper leg to the upper back. A faint year digit is usually the difficult one to see. As such, these coins are frequently counterfeit or altered from common Buffalo nickels. https://nnp.wustl.edu/library/book/554591, Date by DateIn Depth Buffalo Nickel Value1913 to 1938. The buffalo's head is missing the majority of his horn; a small base is sometimes seen. Lookup Coin values for Good, Very Good, Fine, Very Fine, Brilliant Uncirculated & Proof conditions and MS grade. Many surviving nickels have partial dates. Selling coins for the highest price is achieved with planning. The reason that some Buffalo nickels have no dates is simply because the dates have been worn off after many years in circulation. Value charts, grading images and a step by step procedure uncovers how much your box of old coins is worth. A few points on the coin are checked to confirm this top condition. Minted 1913 to 1938; buffalo nickel value is a minimum of 40 to 50 cents each. In uncirculated grades, the value can exceed $50,000. His initial "F" is found under the date of all Buffalo nickels. Slowly tilt the angle to the light to bring out subtle detail. Introduced in 1913; the beginning year saw modifications to the design during the year. Follow an image index to identify all US coin series, from Cents to Gold. Copyright © 2007-2021 Daniel A. HarrisAll Rights Reserved, https://nnp.wustl.edu/library/book/514142, https://nnp.wustl.edu/library/book/554591. US Mint. Selling Coins | How to Get the Best Value. Once again the Philadelphia mint produced a majority of the coins that year with a mintage of almost 45 million coins and Denver producing almost 6 million coins. Although this variety is not as pronounced as the 1916 variety, it is still very obvious on the last digit of the date. Buffalo nickels are a high relief design. Buy & Sell. Compare to the grading images, finding the grade closest to the condition of your coin. Therefore, the highest points of the coin are usually flat and lacking detail due to an incomplete strike. 1914/3 Buffalo nickel ($250) — Buffalo nickel overdates are scarce, and the inclusion of yet another on this list of most valuable nickels proves it. The U.S. Mint was founded in 1792 and has been producing coins for our nation ever since. Unfortunately, an abrasive was used to remove some of the color to brighten the surface. The 1913-D Type II can bring in $125 in Good condition. Individual series covered: Shield, Liberty, Buffalo, and Jefferson nickels. Some of the differences are quite obvious, while others are minute and can only be seen with magnification. Step 2: Grading Condition - Using Video, Images, and Descriptions judge the condition and determine grade. According to his estimates, Buffalo Nickel dies were wearing out and breaking more than three times faster than the Liberty Head Nickel dies. Jun 26, 2014 - Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for Rare USA BUFFALO NICKEL 5 CENTS 1925 San Francisco Mint Bison American coin at the best online prices at eBay! This 14-to-1 ratio makes this coin scarce and all grades. At the Denver mint facility in 1918, another production mistake yielded a spectacular doubled die variety on the obverse. James Earle Fraser was a student of Augustus Saint-Gaudens, the famed designer of the Saint-Gaudens Double Eagle. Additionally, this rare coin can sell for thousands of dollars even in a well-worn condition such as G-4. Reverse: Features Identifying Extremely Fine Grade: Overall most of the fur details remain. The 1924-S Buffalo nickel is by no means a rare coin in circulated condition. Discover the value of your old nickels by matching your coins to the grading images and value charts. Details about Rare Buffalo Nickel See original listing. Look close at the lower edge of the ground, just above "Five Cents". Both Type I and Type II nickels were minted at all three mints, Philadelphia, Denver, and San Francisco and valued individually. Numismatic experts believe that the mint produced over 100,000 of these coins. They are attractive in their design and price, giving them a value boost. No wear to the surface is the defining factor. This is the 1936 buffalo nickel value. The above are wholesale coin values. Flattened areas of the head, shoulder, stomach, and hip are evident but no areas are connecting. Therefore, the uncirculated specimens are extremely rare. Buffalo Nickels vs. Indian Head Nickels . Letters of "Liberty" are faint. Additional doubling is evident on the bison's eye, horn, and mane. Second variety: 1913 to 1938 Type II A modification to the design recessed the lettering of "Five Cents" within the mound below the buffalo. Though the Buffalo Nickel faced a few more problems with its production, the coins continued in circulation for some time to come. A majority of them circulated before collectors could save them for their coin collections. There are several valuable Buffalo nickel key dates and varieties that every coin collector should be aware of. Free delivery for many products! A total of 118 million were struck with all years combined, lowest of the mints. Dates and mintmarks are only part of old nickel value. In 1926, production at the San Francisco mint facility trailed far behind both the Philadelphia and Denver production numbers. Obverse: Features Identifying Extremely Fine Grade: A bold date, fully raised is a defining feature of the Extremely Fine grade. A distinct change protecting both the denomination and mintmark. 1925-S BUFFALO NICKEL - PCGS CERTIFIED - AU55 - RARE DATE! It is very valuable in circulated grades and very rare in uncirculated grades. It is very valuable in circulated grades and very rare in uncirculated grades. Therefore, before buying this coin make sure it is certified as genuine and graded by a professional from a third-party grading company. Clay Models Buffalo Nickels These are clay models of the Buffalo Nickel sculpted by James Earle Fraser. Expanding upward and below the part line all surfaces are similar in texture. In uncirculated grades, the price can exceed $100,000. The following Buffalo nickels in any condition, are worth considerable more than common ones. 800.375.9006. Coins for sale for Buffalo type Nickels items. Get DIY project ideas and easy-to-follow crafts to help you spruce up your space. Any wear shows as a color change to the metal and a smoothing of texture. No date buffalo nickel sells for good money - rare nickels worth money. Last two digits of date are better defined. A line of separation is evident but faint. All Rare High-Grade 1913-S … The Buffalo Nickel was officially introduced into circulation on March 4, 1913, and within a week Chief Engraver Charles Barber was expressing concern about how quickly the dies were wearing out during production. Today, dealers and collectors are searching to find, and have the funds to buy well preserved coins. Denver placed a "D" mintmark on the reverse to identify its production. Coins Found in Pocket Change. A collector passes on these damaged coins. C $20.41; 0 bids. Uncirculated coins are even rarer and will cost $1,000 and up. Each number is complete. The dates on these Buffalo nickels wore off mainly due to the location of the date on the coin itself. Using a single, bright light and adjusting the angle of the coin to the light helps identify a faint digit or two. Skip to main content. This video is sponsored by Noble Gold Investments. Return and keep pace with your rising buffalo nickel value. All other types of nickels without dates are only worth face value. February 14, 2020 . First to judge is the date. This low mintage number at San Francisco yields a high value for this scarce coin. A defining line remains indicating the fur from the back of the buffalo. While, generally speaking, Buffalo nickels tend to be rarer and more valuable the older they are, age is not the singular defining factor of the Buffalo Nickel’s value. Magnification is almost a must to use. Many of the key and high value nickels are the San Francisco coins. A complete separation indicates a strong Fine grade. Throughout the years the main mint placed over 900 million nickels into circulation. Videos, close-up images and descriptions, give insight into the details to accurately grade the condition of your old nickels. The Denver Mint in Colorado also contributed to the numbers of Buffalo nickels minted. Buffalo nickels were made from 1913 to 1938. Research and organize well, value your coins accurately, and then finding and selling to the right buyer equals excellent results. These rare coins today are highly sought after by collectors in part of its design, but also because of the legacy of the coin's designer. How much Buffalo Nickels are worth. Discoloration has taken over the "look" of this nickel. Obverse: Features Identifying the Fine Grade: Heavy wear has begun to create large areas of flatness to the surface, placing the coin in Fine grade. 1883/2 Shield nickel ($220) — A Shield nickel overdate is among the more rare early nickels, though there usually isn’t a … Of these the 1913-S on the "recessed mound" (known as T2) design became the rare variety. This raised lettering was determined unsatisfactory, quick to wear and loose the statement of denomination. This coin's high level of preservation and dramatic eye appeal make it an extremely valuable coin. The "one" is often very weak at the bottom, but is separate from the "nine". From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia The Buffalo nickel or Indian Head nickel is a copper-nickel five-cent piece that was struck by the United States Mint from 1913 to 1938. A step by step method combined with the coin value online guide identifies how to value a coin collection. Coin Values Moving with Precious Metals: Up-Dated 1/4/2021: Gold $1929 | Silver $27.29. 1936-D 3-1/2 Legs Buffalo Nickel Value The 1936 3-1/2 legs Buffalo nickel is worth a lot of money because it’s in high demand among coin collectors. A surprising premium coin is the last year of the Buffalo nickel 1938, all were minted at Denver. High and low areas representing lines of hair remain without any smoothing. Obverse: Features Identifying the Good Grade: A date is readable but very faint. service@apmex.com. All three mints produced both varieties of these coins, but the San Francisco issue with the "S" mint mark on the reverse is the rarest. The majority of the buffalo's horn is visible. Grading Buffalo Nickels - How to Video and Descriptions. Check out our rare buffalo nickel selection for the very best in unique or custom, handmade pieces from our shops. Wikimedia . Lettering of "Five Cents" is placed bold in the design across the mound. By using The Spruce Crafts, you accept our, Buffalo (Indian Head) Nickel Values and Prices, How to Find the Value of a Buffalo Nickel With No Date, Washington Quarter Key Dates, Rarities, and Varieties, Lincoln Wheat Penny Key Dates, Rarities and Varieties, Indian Head Penny: Key Dates, Rarities, and Varieties, Liberty Head "V" Nickel Values and Prices, Eisenhower Dollar: Key Dates, Rarities and Varieties, Early Jefferson Nickel Values 1938 - 1964, Top 10 Most Valuable U.S. Looking on the reverse, just under Five Cents; if without a mintmark, the coin was struck at Philadelphia. Flatness is limited to the forward area of leg. "Liberty" is readable but fully connected with the rim. Many collectors find these coins appealing. Coin Value Price Chart for Buffalo Nickels 5C. Pay a premium value nickel, unscrupulous people will take a 1937-D Buffalo nickel value than! 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