1860 Gold Dollar Proof
Proof struck at the Philadelphia Mint · 154 made
- Mintage
- 154
- Metal
- 90% gold, 10% copper
- Weight
- 1.672 g
- Diameter
- 13 mm (Type 1); 15 mm (Types 2 and 3)
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 an 1860 Gold Dollar Proof worth?
Few coins in the series are harder to find. Even a worn 1860 sells well above face value. The flip side is that counterfeits and altered dates are common, so authentication matters.
What would make yours worth more:
- Grade and, for proofs, strong cameo contrast
- 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 1860 Gold Dollar Proof rare?
- Fairly. The Mint made 154 for collectors. Most were kept in their original packaging.
- Is the 1860 Gold Dollar Proof real gold?
- No, it's gold: 0.0484 troy ounces of pure gold.
- Where is the mint mark on an 1860 Gold Dollar?
- On the reverse, below the wreath. Philadelphia coins have no mint mark. A "D" on a coin dated 1861 or earlier means Dahlonega, Georgia.
- How many 1860 Gold Dollar proofs were made?
- 154.
What to check on your 1860
- There's no mint mark on this one, so the date and condition are what matter.
- Judge the grade under good light. Look at the hair above the eye and the bow of the wreath. Many gold dollars were made into jewelry, so check for solder marks or removed loops.
Gold coins are counterfeited more than any other US coins. A genuine 1860 weighs 1.672 g. Buy certified examples from a reputable dealer. Proofs from 1860 were struck one at a time in small numbers and many were later spent or mishandled. Look for hairlines from cleaning, which lower the grade.
The story of the 1860
Type 3 at the southern mints (1857 to 1861)
The Type 3 design used a larger, flatter head that struck up better than Type 2. Philadelphia made hundreds of thousands each year, but Charlotte and Dahlonega produced only a few thousand and these coins are scarce. San Francisco struck 10,000 to 15,000 a year. Charlotte struck its last gold dollars in 1859.
The 1861-D is the famous coin of this era. After Georgia seized the Dahlonega Mint in April 1861, a small number of gold dollars were struck there under Confederate control. It is a major rarity today and is often counterfeited. Philadelphia struck 527,150 gold dollars in 1861 as the war began. Branch mint Type 3 dollars of these years are usually found in Very Fine to About Uncirculated.
Elsewhere in US coinage in 1860
The Indian Head cent received its oak wreath and shield reverse, the design it kept until 1909.
How to recognize it
The smallest US coin ever struck came in three types. Type 1 (1849 to 1854) shows a tiny Liberty head and measures only 13 mm. Type 2 (1854 to 1856) is larger and thinner, with Liberty wearing a feathered headdress. Type 3 (1856 to 1889) enlarges the portrait. Every type has a wreath on the reverse around 1 DOLLAR and the date.
Mintage chart
Specifications
| Series | Gold Dollar (1849–1889) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1860 |
| Mint | Philadelphia Mint |
| Mint mark | None |
| Strike type | Proof |
| Mintage | 154 |
| Face value | $1 |
| Composition | 90% gold, 10% copper |
| Weight | 1.672 grams |
| Diameter | 13 mm (Type 1); 15 mm (Types 2 and 3) |
| Edge | Reeded |
| Designer | James B. Longacre |
Other 1860 Gold Dollar issues
| Coin | Mintage | Type | Silver |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1860 Gold Dollar | 36,514 | Circulation strike | – |
| 1860 Gold Dollar Proof | 154 | Proof | – |
| 1860-S Gold Dollar | 13,000 | Circulation strike | – |
| 1860-D Gold Dollar | 1,566 | Circulation strike | – |
Mintage: Gold 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.