1926-S Peace Silver Dollar
Circulation strike struck at the San Francisco Mint · 6,980,000 made
- Mintage
- 6,980,000
- Metal
- 90% silver, 10% copper
- Weight
- 26.73 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 1926-S Peace Silver Dollar worth?
In worn condition it trades for about its silver content, 0.7735 troy ounces. Uncirculated coins with full luster or attractive toning sell for more.
What would make yours worth more:
- Uncirculated condition with full original luster
- A die variety or minting error
For market prices, check recent sold results for certified coins in the same grade.
Quick answers
- Is the 1926-S Peace Silver Dollar rare?
- No. 7 million were made, a typical run for the series. Condition and varieties decide its value, not the date.
- Is the 1926-S Peace Silver Dollar silver?
- Yes. It's 90% silver, 10% copper and holds 0.7735 troy ounces of pure silver.
- Where is the mint mark on a 1926 Peace Silver Dollar?
- On the reverse, below the word ONE, near the tip of the eagle's wing. Philadelphia coins have no mint mark. On this coin the mark is S, for San Francisco.
- Which San Francisco dates near 1926 are scarcer?
- The 1927-S at 866,000, the 1925-S at 1,610,000, the 1928-S at 1,632,000, plus 1 more. So the 1926-S is one of the easier dates of its stretch.
- How many 1926-S Peace Silver Dollar coins were made?
- 6,980,000.
What to check on your 1926-S
- Make sure the mint mark really is an S. A worn or filled mark can be misread. It's what separates your coin from the 1926 (1.9 million made).
- Don't clean it. Cleaning leaves fine scratches and an unnatural shine that collectors avoid.
- Judge the grade under good light. Wear appears first on the hair above Liberty's ear and on the eagle's wing feathers.
Circulated examples are usually traded for their silver content. Pick out the best ones: original luster and attractive toning lift a coin above melt, while cleaned coins lose most of their collector value.
The story of the 1926-S
San Francisco ramped up hard in 1926: 6,980,000 coins, about 4.3 times the 1925 run. The next year it made 866,000 (1927-S).
It was the big producer of the year, well ahead of 1926 (1.9 million) and 1926-D (2.3 million).
San Francisco struck the Peace Silver Dollar in 9 issues between 1922 and 1935. By mintage this one lands in the more common half, while the key for that mint is the 1927-S (866,000). Within the 1920s it's 12th smallest of 19, between the 1923-D (6.8 million) and the 1925 (10 million).
More on the 1926-S
San Francisco struck 6,980,000 Peace dollars in 1926, the largest total of the year and more than Philadelphia and Denver combined. It was also about four times San Francisco's 1,610,000 of 1925, the busiest year at the branch since 1923. Philadelphia struck only 1,939,000 that year.
San Francisco was also busy with commemoratives in 1926: it shared production of the Oregon Trail Memorial half dollar with Philadelphia that year. For collectors, the 1926-S is an approachable San Francisco date. Plenty of circulated and lower uncirculated coins exist, so you won't need to chase one. Quality falls off in gem grades, as it does for most San Francisco Peace dollars, so a coin with full luster and few marks is worth a closer look. Check the S below ONE near the wing tip, then the cheek and the eagle's leg for wear. Worn coins trade near metal value with a small premium; clean uncirculated coins carry a collector premium.
Pittman Act coinage winds down (1923 to 1928)
Peace dollars continued in large numbers to replace the coins melted under the Pittman Act, with Philadelphia striking 30.8 million in 1923. Output fell after that year. San Francisco's 1924-S and 1925-S, each under two million, are scarce in high grades. Denver made no dollars in 1924 or 1925.
The 1927 issues from all three mints are relatively scarce. The 1928 from Philadelphia, with only 360,649 struck, is the lowest mintage of the series and is often confused with the more common 1928-S. Pittman purchases were complete in 1928 and coinage stopped. San Francisco dollars of these years are often softly struck. Many survivors show heavy bag marks from storage in Treasury vaults. Bags of Peace dollars also emerged in the Treasury releases of the early 1960s.
How to recognize it
Anthony de Francisci's Liberty faces left wearing a crown of light rays, with LIBERTY above and the date below. The reverse shows an eagle at rest on a mountaintop, holding an olive branch, as the sun rises behind it, with the word PEACE on the rock. The mint mark is below the word ONE, near the tip of the eagle's wing.
Mintage chart
Specifications
| Series | Peace Silver Dollar (1921–present) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1926 |
| Mint | San Francisco Mint |
| Mint mark | "S" |
| Strike type | Circulation strike |
| Mintage | 6,980,000 |
| Face value | $1 |
| Composition | 90% silver, 10% copper |
| Weight | 26.73 grams |
| Diameter | 38.1 mm |
| Edge | Reeded |
| Silver content | 0.7735 troy oz (24.057 g) |
| Designer | Anthony de Francisci |
Other 1926 Peace Silver Dollar issues
| Coin | Mintage | Type | Silver |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1926 Peace Silver Dollar | 1,939,000 | Circulation strike | 0.7735 oz |
| 1926-D Peace Silver Dollar | 2,348,700 | Circulation strike | 0.7735 oz |
| 1926-S Peace Silver Dollar | 6,980,000 | Circulation strike | 0.7735 oz |
Mintage: Peace 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.