1885 Liberty Head "V" Nickel
Circulation strike struck at the Philadelphia Mint · 1,476,490 made
- Mintage
- 1,476,490 (includes proofs)
- Metal
- 75% copper, 25% nickel
- Weight
- 5 g
- Diameter
- 21.2 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 an 1885 Liberty Head "V" Nickel worth?
Few coins in the series are harder to find. Even a worn 1885 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:
- 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.
The 1885 is the key date of the Liberty Head nickel series.
Quick answers
- Is the 1885 Liberty Head "V" Nickel rare?
- Somewhat. 1,476,490 were made, fewer than most dates, so collectors treat it as a semi-key.
- Is the 1885 Liberty Head "V" Nickel silver?
- No. It's 75% copper, 25% nickel. The only silver nickels are the 1942 to 1945 wartime coins with a large mint mark above Monticello.
- Where is the mint mark on an 1885 Liberty Head "V" Nickel?
- No mint mark. Philadelphia only.
- Which Philadelphia dates near 1885 are scarcer?
- None. Within five years either side, no Philadelphia issue had a smaller mintage than the 1885.
- How many 1885 Liberty Head "V" Nickel coins were made?
- 1,476,490.
What to check on your 1885
- There's no mint mark on this one, so the date and condition are what matter.
- Old coins pick up damage over a long life. Look for holes, bends, scratches or signs of cleaning before you judge the grade, because a damaged coin sells for a fraction of a problem-free one.
- Judge the grade under good light. Look at LIBERTY on the coronet, the hair curls and the corn ears in the wreath. Full LIBERTY is a key threshold for Fine and better.
The story of the 1885
Production at Philadelphia fell off a cliff in 1885. Only 1,476,490 were made, against 11 million the year before. That drop is why the 1885 is the one people look for. The next year it made 3.3 million (1886).
No other mint struck it for circulation that year, so every 1885 you find is from Philadelphia. In the whole series, its mintage sits closest to the 1886 (3,330,290) and the 1894 (5,413,132).
Only the 1913 has a lower mintage among Philadelphia's 32 Liberty Head "V" Nickels. No Liberty Head "V" Nickel of the 1880s had a smaller run.
No CENTS, racketeers and two low mintage keys (1883 to 1886)
Charles Barber's Liberty Head nickel replaced the Shield design in 1883. The first reverse showed only a Roman numeral V with no word CENTS. Some people gold plated these coins and passed them as five dollar gold pieces, earning them the name racketeer nickels. Within a few months the Mint added CENTS below the wreath and moved E PLURIBUS UNUM above it.
Many No CENTS nickels were saved as novelties, so they are common in high grades, while 16 million With CENTS coins followed. Output fell sharply in 1885 and 1886 as demand weakened, with only 1.5 million in 1885 and 3.3 million in 1886, making them the key dates of the series. Both are usually found worn to Good or Very Good. Gold plated 1883 No CENTS nickels are period novelties rather than Mint errors.
How to recognize it
Liberty faces left wearing a coronet inscribed LIBERTY, with 13 stars around her and the date below. The reverse has a large Roman numeral V inside a wreath with UNITED STATES OF AMERICA and E PLURIBUS UNUM. The word CENTS was added below the wreath partway through 1883. Mint marks, used only on the 1912-D and 1912-S, are on the reverse to the left of CENTS.
Mintage chart
Specifications
| Series | Liberty Head "V" Nickel (1883–1913) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1885 |
| Mint | Philadelphia Mint |
| Mint mark | None |
| Strike type | Circulation strike |
| Mintage | 1,476,490 (includes proofs) |
| Face value | 5¢ |
| Composition | 75% copper, 25% nickel |
| Weight | 5 grams |
| Diameter | 21.2 mm |
| Edge | Plain |
| Designer | Charles E. Barber |
Mintage: United States nickel mintage figures (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0), compiled from US Mint records and the Guide Book of United States Coins. How we build these pages.