1973 Eisenhower Dollar
Circulation strike struck at the Philadelphia Mint · 2,000,056 made
- Mintage
- 2,000,056
- Metal
- Copper core clad in 75% copper / 25% nickel
- Weight
- 22.68 g
- Diameter
- 38.1 mm
Original illustration. Tap to flip. Not a photograph of the actual coin.
Face value · Metal value · Small premium · Collector premium · Significant rarity. We use bands because prices change daily.
What is a 1973 Eisenhower Dollar worth?
It's scarcer than a typical date, so even circulated examples sell above face. The best uncirculated coins are where the money is.
What would make yours worth more:
- Uncirculated condition with full original luster
- A die variety or minting error
- Certification by PCGS or NGC, which buyers expect for scarce dates
For market prices, check recent sold results for certified coins in the same grade.
Quick answers
- Is the 1973 Eisenhower Dollar rare?
- Somewhat. 2,000,056 were made, fewer than most dates, so collectors treat it as a semi-key.
- Is the 1973 Eisenhower Dollar silver?
- No. It's copper core clad in 75% copper / 25% nickel. Circulating silver dollars ended with the 1935 Peace dollar. Some Eisenhower dollars with an S mint mark were made in 40% silver for collectors, but circulation Ike dollars are copper-nickel clad.
- Where is the mint mark on a 1973 Eisenhower Dollar?
- On the obverse, below Eisenhower's portrait and above the date. Philadelphia coins have no mint mark.
- Which Philadelphia dates near 1973 are scarcer?
- None. Within five years either side, no Philadelphia issue had a smaller mintage than the 1973.
- How many 1973 Eisenhower Dollar coins were made?
- 2,000,056.
What to check on your 1973
- There's no mint mark on this one, so the date and condition are what matter.
- Proof or circulation strike? A proof has mirror-like fields and frosted design details and was sold to collectors, not released in change. The 1973-S Eisenhower Dollar Proof (Clad) (2,760,339 made) is the one to compare with.
- A face that's fully copper colored could be a missing clad layer error. Patchy discoloration is usually damage.
- Judge the grade under good light. Look at Eisenhower's cheek and the hair above his ear and at the eagle's head and breast. These heavy coins picked up bag marks easily, so clean, mark-free surfaces matter as much as wear.
The story of the 1973
Production at Philadelphia fell off a cliff in 1973. Only 2,000,056 were made, against 76 million the year before. That drop is why the 1973 is the one people look for. In 1974 the figure was 27 million.
1973-D came to 2 million, so neither mint's 1973 coin is much scarcer than the other. In the whole series, its mintage sits closest to the 1976 (Bicentennial, Type I) (4,019,000) and the 1977 (12,596,000).
Of the 8 Eisenhower Dollars Philadelphia struck between 1971 and 1978, this is the scarcest. Among the 1970s issues, only the 1973-D had a smaller run.
More on the 1973
No 1973 Eisenhower dollars from Philadelphia were released into circulation. The coins were struck for that year's uncirculated mint sets: 2,000,056 were made, but only about 1,769,258 sets were sold and the unsold coins were melted. That makes it the lowest-mintage clad Ike from Philadelphia, a tiny figure next to the 75,890,000 struck the year before. Denver's 1973 coin went into the same sets.
Low mintage doesn't make the 1973 rare in the way most people mean. Plenty survive because they were saved in sets. Many were later taken out of the packaging. If you find a worn 1973 with no mint mark in a coin jar, it almost certainly came from a broken set and was spent by someone who didn't know or care. A clean uncirculated example carries a small premium; a sharp, lightly marked coin at the top of the grading scale carries a collector premium, because coins handled in and out of sets often picked up scuffs along the way.
Apollo 11 eagles and silver for collectors (1971 to 1974)
The Eisenhower dollar arrived in 1971, two years after both the former president's death and the first Moon landing, so its reverse borrowed the Apollo 11 insignia. Philadelphia and Denver struck copper-nickel clad coins for circulation while San Francisco made 40% silver versions for collectors, sold in blue packs as uncirculated coins and brown boxes as proofs.
The 1973 Philadelphia and Denver coins were made only for mint sets, never for general circulation, which is why they have the lowest mintages of the regular clad issues. Specialists also sort the 1972 Philadelphia coins into three reverse types by the shape of the Earth and its islands. Most clad Ikes saw little real use, so many survive with heavy bag marks rather than wear.
How to recognize it
Frank Gasparro's obverse shows Dwight D. Eisenhower facing left with LIBERTY above, IN GOD WE TRUST below his chin and the date at the bottom. The reverse is adapted from the Apollo 11 mission insignia: an eagle landing on the Moon with an olive branch in its talons, with the Earth above. Coins dated 1776-1976 replace it with Dennis Williams' Liberty Bell superimposed on the Moon. The mint mark is below the portrait, above the date.
Mintage chart
Specifications
| Series | Eisenhower Dollar (1971–1978) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1973 |
| Mint | Philadelphia Mint |
| Mint mark | None |
| Strike type | Circulation strike |
| Mintage | 2,000,056 |
| Face value | $1 |
| Composition | Copper core clad in 75% copper / 25% nickel |
| Weight | 22.68 grams |
| Diameter | 38.1 mm |
| Edge | Reeded |
| Designer | Frank Gasparro |
Other 1973 Eisenhower Dollar issues
| Coin | Mintage | Type | Silver |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1973 Eisenhower Dollar | 2,000,056 | Circulation strike | – |
| 1973-D Eisenhower Dollar | 2,000,000 | Circulation strike | – |
| 1973-S Silver Eisenhower Dollar Uncirculated | 1,883,140 | Collector uncirculated | 0.3162 oz |
| 1973-S Eisenhower Dollar Proof (Clad) | 2,760,339 | Proof | – |
| 1973-S Silver Eisenhower Dollar Proof | 1,013,646 | Proof | 0.3162 oz |
Mintage: Eisenhower dollar (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0), compiled from US Mint records and the Guide Book of United States Coins. How we build these pages.