1921 Silver Dollar
Coin Values Moving with Precious Metals: Up-Dated 2/8/2021: Gold $1813 Silver $26.90
The 1921 Morgan dollar is the most unusual issue in the entire series. After 1904, with national silver bullion supplies all but exhausted, the government suspended coinage of silver dollars altogether. In 1918, under the Pittman Act, more than 270 million silver dollars were melted down for bullion. Coin Rings Handmade From Actual 100 Year Old 1921 US Morgan Silver Dollars. 90% Silver (“Tails out”). Sizes 7-20 incl 1/2 and 1/4 sizes. The first payment was made when it came due in June 1921, and marked the beginning of an increasingly rapid devaluation of the mark, which fell in value to approximately 330 marks per dollar. The total reparations demanded were 132 billion gold marks, but Germany had to pay only 50 billion marks at the time, as the reparations were required to. In total, 270,232,722 silver dollars were melted. A key piece of the Pittman Act called for the replacement of all coins melted with new silver dollars. This was the reason that the Morgan dollar was resurrected in 1921. Unfortunately, the Mint had already destroyed the hubs for the Morgan dollar years earlier.
An important first year of the new design, your 1921 Peace silver dollar value shows it is highly regarded by collectors and dealers.
High grade 1921 Peace dollars are often the centerpiece of a collection. Your coin is both the start of the series and also a one year 'high relief' issue. These coins have an exceptionally deep and boldly struck design, compared to the following years it is very distinctive.
As with all old coins, condition plays a large role in determining value. Because of their special striking features it's key to reference the grading images and descriptions below to accurately judge how well your coin has survived.
Pictured to the right is an 'uncirculated' 1921 Peace dollar. A number of coins in this condition were saved in 1921 because of the new design, and are highly sought by today's collectors. It is often surprising how much these are worth.
| 1921 Peace Silver Dollar Value | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Condition of Coin | ||||
| Date | Good | Fine | Extremely Fine | Uncirculated |
| 1921 Peace Silver Dollar Value Updated | 2/8/2021 | |||
| 1921 | $62 | $72 | $93 | $218 |
Strike Appeal and 1921 Peace Silver Dollar Value
As you look closely at the two 1921 Peace dollars pictured, a greater depth of design is evident on the left coin compared to the coin on the right. A distinct boldness is notable by the complete rendering of hair detail in the center. The second coin's design is muted by the incomplete strike.
Because of what was intended as a high relief design and production problems at the time not all 1921 Peace silver dollars were created equally. The first coin is far superior in depth of strike, and appeal to collectors.
Both coins are fairly alike in other areas of grading consideration. Subtle shades of blue and gold overlay nice luster on the first, the second dollar is brighter with less toning featuring a 'satin' luster.
Luster quality is above average on each coin. Distracting marks and abrasions are minimal as well. However making a clear choice by collectors, it comes down to strike quality, with the bold strike leading in 1921 Peace silver dollar value.
1921 Peace Dollar Value is Conditional
Starting with the image of an 'uncirculated' Peace dollar, compare your coin to the grading images to find a close match. Wear from circulation flattens and removes details from the surface. The visual difference separates one 'grade' from the next. Although top values are reserved for the 'Uncirculated' grade, a lightly worn 1921 Peace dollar is still highly valued by collectors.
Uncirculated: A Peace silver dollar in 'uncirculated' condition must not show any wear to its surface. First to show wear is the mint luster imparted to the surface when coined. Hold your coin by the rims at a slight angle, when tilted back and forth luster rotates across the entire design. Even a short time spent in circulation quickly removes this luster leaving areas dull in appearance.
Adding a layer of complexity to grading your coin is the possibility of a 'weak' strike. A further discussion of bold verses weak strike of design specific to the 1921 Peace dollar is covered above.
Extremely Fine: A slight amount of wear evenly distributed on a silver dollar indicates the 'extremely fine' condition. Look closely at the tie of hair at the back of Miss Liberty's head. Although some flatness is evident, a distant roundness to the design remains. Many strands of hair also show in the wisps trailing back from her neck. Overall your coin should demonstrate a nice sharp appearance.
Fine: Moderate, noticeable merging of design is typical of a 1921 Peace dollar in 'fine' condition. Obvious wear covers both Miss Liberty and her features and has reduced the original boldness of the lettering. A smoothness and flatting of the once rounded rays rising from the crown is a good indication of this grade.
Good: Wide areas of wear and merging of the hairline with the neck designates your coin as 'good' condition. Although in a comparatively low grade, 1921 Peace silver dollar value even in this worn condition confirms its collectability status. On the reverse, the eagle is well outlined, however most feather detail is missing.
Coin Values CoinStudy Articles
Date by Date
In Depth Peace Silver Dollar Value
1921 to 1935
With today's collector admiring these large silver coins, Peace Dollar values are very strong. All have a minimum value of $20.70 with many rare date and mintmark combinations far exceeding the base silver value. Determine how much your old Peace dollars are worth.
Check all your silver dollar values with the coin value chart. Early dollars are scarce and highly valued. Morgan silver dollars are a minimum of $24.55 and Peace dollars are now worth $20.70 each. Demand from rare coin dealers, high collector interest and silver bullion value are all positives for your coins.
★Coin Values Discovery finds... 1921 Peace Silver Dollar Value and...
Old coins retain a strong collector following. Plus, if your dimes through dollars are dated prior to 1965 they contain 90% silver. Additionally within each series are rare date and mintmark combinations. Revisit your box of old coins, today's value charts show a steady increase.
Safe Coin Storage Recommendations
Recommendations on basic supplies that greatly improve coin storage. Providing for safe handling, preserving of value and organizing your box of old coins. Peace dollars a heavy coin, high is silver content and easy to tarnish, needs a certain amount of careful handling to maintain their appeal to collectors. Housing them safely is covered in the Safe Coin Storage article.
This is the story of the 1921 Morgan dollar, the last coin of the 19th century. It was an old design nobody expected to see again.
What Is a 1921 Morgan Dollar Worth?
Mintage: 44,690,000Circulated Grades
Uncirculated Grades
What Is a 1921-D Morgan Dollar Worth?
Mintage: 20,345,000Circulated Grades
Uncirculated Grades
What Is a 1921-S Morgan Dollar Worth?
Mintage: 21,695,000
Circulated Grades
Uncirculated Grades
The information on this page does not constitute an offer to buy or sell the coin(s) referred to. Proof and prooflike examples of this issue may have greater or lesser 'finest known' and different record auction prices.
Where Is the Mintmark on a 1921 Silver Dollar?
It's important to know whether or not your coin has a mintmark. On both the Morgan silver dollar and Peace silver dollar, the mintmark is found on the reverse.
For the Morgan dollar, this location is centered at the bottom of the design. It is placed just below the tail feathers of the eagle.
This also raises the question of fakes. The Red Book warns that collectors should be wary of altered mintmarks. How can you tell if a 1921 silver dollar is real?
Our guide to spotting counterfeit coins will give you some useful tips for identifying real silver dollars. For a modest fee, you can always submit your coin to third-party grading services such as NGC and PCGS to have the coin authenticated, as well.
We also have Morgan silver dollars for sale that are already certified by the leading third-party graders:
What Makes The 1921 Morgan Dollar Special?
The 1921 Morgan dollar was the last year for the design. It was also the last U.S. coin design of the 19th century to be struck. 1921 Morgan dollar mintages at all three U.S. Mint locations (Philadelphia, Denver, and San Francisco) were the highest of the series. Plentiful mintages and a low, flat strike means that the 1921 Morgan dollar is one of the least popular coins in the series.
By contrast, the 1895 issue is the rarest Morgan dollar. Only proofs were minted that year, and just 880 of them were produced.
Why Did We Make Silver Dollars In 1921?
The Morgan dollar was never that popular with the public. It was invented by Congress as a subsidy for the politically powerful silver mining industry in 1878. No one had ever expected to see new Morgan dollars after the last ones were struck in 1904. In fact, the master hubs were destroyed in 1910, when the U.S. Mint cleared out the hubs and dies that were no longer used.
Events in WWI in 1918 led to the resumption of Morgan dollar production in 1921. The British were suffering a silver shortage that jeopardized the entire Allied side in WWI. They had issued more silver certificates in India than they had silver to back them. If India revolted, the British would have to make peace with Germany. The British government appealed to the U.S. to sell them silver.
Even though it risked losing the war, the “silverite” faction in Congress refused to back the melting of silver dollars. This faction had forced the creation of the Morgan dollar in the first place. They demanded that every silver dollar melted was replaced after the war in return for their support. (See “The 1918 Pittman Act: Boondoggle Or Necessary Morgan Dollar Massacre?” for the full story.)
The 1918 Pittman Act forced the U.S. Mint to buy silver at $1 per ounce after the war to replace the 270 million silver dollars that were melted down. As long as silver prices were above a dollar, the silver miners preferred to sell their ore on the open market. Once it dropped below that, they clamored for the government to buy their silver. That moment came in 1920.
The 1921 Morgan Dollar: Falling Flat
The 1918 “deal with the silver devil” had come due. The government was once again buying silver for more than the market price. (Silver prices would hit a low of 53 cents an ounce in March 1921.)
Since the master Morgan dollar coin hubs had been destroyed in 1910, Chief Engraver of the Mint George Morgan made new low relief hubs from scratch. His emphasis was on getting maximum use out of the coin dies, instead of making pretty coins.
1921 Silver Dollar Price
This resulted in a coin that looked flat and lifeless, even when fully struck. This would be the last-ever year for the Morgan dollar (for real, this time, as the Peace dollar would replace it in December). The emphasis at the Mint was not to commemorate this, but to shove them out the door as quickly as possible. They would never see the light of day, anyway.
Silver dollars were stored in Treasury Department vaults to back the paper silver certificates that circulated. Theoretically, you could ask to exchange your certificate for actual silver dollars, but this was rarely done. The big silver coins just sat stacked in canvas bags inside locked vaults.