Barber Dimes

The Barber dime is a classic American coin with values on the low end tied to the silver bullion market. On the upper end of the spectrum are pieces like the 1894-S Barber dime, which sells at auction for more than $1.5 million. So, the Barber dime appeals to a wide range of coin collectors, which is just one of many reasons this coin series has enjoyed incredible popularity for decades.

The Barber dime was designed by Charles E. Barber and was first released to the public in 1892. The series continue into 1916 and spawned a number of key and semi-key date coins, including the 1895-O, 1896-S, 1901-S, 1903-S, 1913-S. Coin values for those pieces are all over the board, but are lofty for high-quality specimens.

For the most part, it’s easy to break down coin values for Barber dimes into two categories. These two segments include the common-date, low-grade dimes that are worth only a tad more than their intrinsic silver bullion content; scarce-date or better-preserved Barber dimes (of any date) represent the second main category of Barber dimes and normally sell for much higher prices.

Coin values for key-date Barber dimes and high-grade specimens of any issue (including more common dates) don’t change as often as for the lower-end silver material. Often, prices for specific pieces are dependent on the physical qualities of an individual coin, such as toning, strike, and overall eye appeal. Coin values for the low-grade common-date pieces are less determined by eye-appeal and, again, are dependent almost solely on what the silver market is doing.