1883 H Canadian Dime
The 1883 H Canadian Dime is a Canadian dime struck for circulation with 300,000 made. Value band: small premium. Here is how to recognize it, what makes one worth more and what to check on yours.
- Year
- 1883
- Circulation mintage
- 300,000
- Value band
- Small premium
- Composition
- Sterling silver (92.5% silver)
Original illustration of the coin's shape and metal. Tap to flip. Not a picture of the actual design.
Face value · Metal value · Small premium · Collector premium · Significant rarity. We use bands because prices change daily.
What is an 1883 H Canadian Dime worth?
At 300,000, the 1883 H Canadian Dime has a smaller run than most Canadian dimes, so collectors pay a small premium for it, especially in uncirculated condition. Well circulated examples sit close to face value.
What would make yours worth more:
- Sharp detail with original luster
- A recognized variety for the date
- Professional grading for a key date
For market prices, look at recent sold results for the same coin in the same condition, not asking prices.
Quick answers
- Is the 1883 H Canadian Dime rare?
- It is scarcer than most Canadian dimes. Collectors pay a small premium for good examples.
- How many 1883 H Canadian dimes were made?
- 300,000 were struck for circulation.
- What is the 1883 H Canadian Dime made of?
- Sterling silver (92.5% silver). It weighs 2.33 g and measures 18.03 mm.
- Is the 1883 H Canadian Dime still legal tender?
- Yes. Canadian dimes are legal tender, but a silver one is worth more for its metal than its face value.
The 1883 dime in context
The 1883-H is one of the scarcer Heaton dimes. Its published mintage is just 300,000, less than a third of the 1,000,000 struck for 1882-H and among the lowest of the whole Victorian run. It came from the private Heaton mint in Birmingham, which handled Canada's dime orders every year from 1880 to 1883. After it, the next few dates would be struck in London.
The early 1880s were a period of small, irregular orders. Canada was still a young country of a few million people and the demand for ten cent pieces could be met with modest batches. The 1883-H was the smallest of the Heaton orders of that decade and it was followed by the even smaller 1884 from London. Together they form a run of low mintage dates that collectors of Victorian silver know well. Most examples saw years of heavy use, so better preserved coins are hard to find. That combination of a low figure and long, hard use is what makes the 1883-H so popular with specialists in Victorian silver.
How to recognize it
This is the standard Victorian Dominion design. The queen wears a diadem and faces left inside VICTORIA DEI GRATIA REGINA CANADA, while the reverse shows 10 CENTS and 1883 in a wreath of maple leaves with a crown above. Look for the small H on the reverse, the mark of the Heaton mint. It is sterling silver at about 2.33 g and 18 mm with a reeded edge, so a little under 0.07 troy oz of silver. On worn coins the 3 at the end of the date is easily confused with an 8, so use a magnifier and good light before you decide which year you have.
1883 H Canadian Dime by the numbers
Measured by how many were made, the 1883 H Canadian Dime ranks 2nd lowest of 157 Canadian dime dates and varieties from 1858 to 2024. The next scarcer is the 1884 Canadian Dime (150,000); the next more common is the 1887 Canadian Dime (350,000).
For scale, the most common is the 2008 Canadian Dime with 467.5 million, about 1558 times as many. The scarcest is the 1884 Canadian Dime with 150,000, 2 times fewer than this one.
Compared with the dates around it, the 1883 output was 3.3 times fewer than 1882 and 2 times the 1884 figure.
Over the 1880s the Mint produced 6.55 million dimes across 10 dates and varieties; the 1883 H Canadian Dime accounts for 4.6% of that.
What to check on your 1883 H Canadian Dime
- Check the date first: silver Canadian dimes carry dates from 1858 to 1968; this one has 0.0693 troy oz. Silver coins are not magnetic and ring clearly when dropped on a hard surface.
- Never clean it. Rubbing or polishing leaves fine scratches that collectors spot at once and that cut the value of silver dates sharply.
- Look at the high points of the portrait and the design. Wear there sets the grade. The grade in turn drives the value of older dimes.
With only 300,000 struck, the 1883-H trades for a collector premium even when worn. Check that the H is present and the date really ends in 3. Most examples show heavy wear, so even a coin with a full date, a clear H and some hair detail is desirable. Be cautious with very bright coins, which have often been cleaned. A natural gray tone is preferred by most collectors. If your coin is worn but honest, it is still a good example of one of the less common Heaton dates.
Queen Victoria silver dimes (1858 to 1901)
Canada's ten cent piece began in 1858, when the Province of Canada, today's Ontario and Quebec, switched its accounts to dollars and cents and ordered its first decimal coins from the Royal Mint in London. That single 1858 issue had to last until after Confederation. Through the 1860s Canadians paid with American silver that circulated at a discount, so the new Dominion exported much of it and ordered silver of its own, starting with 1870. Canada still had no mint. London struck most years and the private Heaton mint in Birmingham filled several orders, adding a small H. Orders followed demand, so there are no dimes dated 1873, 1876 to 1879, 1895 or 1897.
Every coin of the reign is sterling silver, about 2.33 g and 18 mm with a reeded edge, holding a little under 0.07 troy oz of pure silver. The 1858 shows a young Victoria with a laurel wreath in her hair, while from 1870 she wears a diadem; both read VICTORIA DEI GRATIA REGINA CANADA. The reverse has 10 CENTS and the date inside a wreath of maple leaves with a crown on top. Mintages ran from 150,000 in 1884 to 1,870,000 for 1871-H. The source also lists small die varieties in 1870, 1886, 1891, 1892, 1893 and 1899.
The famous key is 1889, where only an estimated 10,000 to 20,000 of the reported 600,000 are thought to carry that date. The 1884, 1883-H, 1887, 1885 and 1890-H are also hard to find in decent condition. Read the date with a magnifier and look for the H, because 1871 exists both with and without it. Most survivors are heavily worn, often holed or bent, so any detail left in the hair and leaves lifts a coin above the crowd. Be wary of altered dates on the key years.
Mintage chart
Specifications
| Country | Canada |
|---|---|
| Denomination | 10 cents |
| Issuer | Royal Canadian Mint |
| Year | 1883 |
| Circulation mintage | 300,000 |
| Composition | Sterling silver (92.5% silver) |
| Weight | 2.33 g |
| Diameter | 18.03 mm |
| Shape | Round |
| Edge | Reeded |
Frequently asked questions
Is the 1883-H dime rare?
It is one of the scarcer Victorian dimes, with a published mintage of 300,000. That is low for the series, so it carries a collector premium in every grade, especially when the date and H are clear.
Where is the H on an 1883 dime?
Turn to the reverse, the side with the wreath. The H is a very small letter on that side and wear can make it faint. Use a magnifier with light coming in from the side.
Mintage figures: Dime (Canadian coin) (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0), compiled from Royal Canadian Mint figures. How we build these pages.