10 Rare Millionaire Dimes and Bicentennial Quarters Worth $2,558 Million

I hardly ever hear the jingle of coins in my pocket nowadays. Like most Americans, I’ve developed the habit of tossing spare change without a second thought into jars, cup holders, or between couch cushions.

But after chance conversations with veteran coin dealer Tony Mendez in a local flea market in the spring, I have never looked at my pocket change the same way again.

“Most people don’t realize they may be spending retirement money when they break a dollar,” Mendez told me as he inspected a tray of seemingly ordinary dimes and quarters. “I have had people buy coffee with coins worth thousands.”

This commentary stimulated serious numismatic research, especially on two types of coins that many Americans might still run across in circulation: the rare dime and some special Bicentennial quarters made for our nation’s 200th birthday. What I found might just cause you to think twice about that spare change.

Rare Dimes That Can Make You A Millionaire

The Holy Grail: 1916-D Mercury Dime

Value Range: $5000 – $100,000+
This one is the Holy Grail among many collectors: the 1916-D Mercury dime. This was because altogether, only 264,000 dimes were minted at the Denver facility. Such is the pathetically small number compared to the others that produced millions at the other mints; it is the key date in the entire Mercury series.

“They mostly ended up in circulation early on before anybody really paid any attention to them,” says Sarah Jenkins of the family coin store that has been in business in Boston since 1962. “Those that are still around often show considerable wear.”

Even the ones showing heavy wear cost more than $5,000, while those that are immaculate and uncirculated have sold for much more than $100,000. Jenkins spoke of a construction worker who found one in the dresser drawer of his grandfather’s house, and he used the money from it to pay for the down payment on his house.

Identifying it: Look for the little “D”-mint mark under the fasces bundle on the reverse side.

1942/1 Mercury Dime Overdate

The Value Range: $3,000 – To – $75,000

Perhaps one of the most well-known “mistakes” in American dimes may have happened when a die for 1942 was accidentally struck over a 1941 one. The die was overdate error with traces of the “1” still visible beneath the “2” in the date.

“It’s like catching the Mint with its pants down,” veteran collector Mike Hernandez chuckles as he showed me one through a loupe at a coin convention. “You can really see where they tried to cover up their mistake but just couldn’t quite hide it.”

This error occurred at both Philadelphia (no mint mark) and Denver (D mint mark) facilities, with this last variety significantly rarer and more valuable. Under a magnifying glass, the ghostly “1” beneath the “2” becomes evident, creating what numismatists refer to as a “dramatic overdate.”

THE 1968 No-S PROOF DIME

Value Range: $20,000 – $80,000

Proof coins cast very special coins for collectors indeed and are struck using polished dies and planchets. These are coins that would be produced for the San Francisco Mint where the coins are then marked with an “S” mint mark. But in 1968, only a restricted number of proof dimes escaped the premises without their S mint mark.

“There’s fewer than 25 authenticated examples,” said Robert Cohen, a third-generation coin dealer I spoke to by phone. “Finding one would be like winning a lottery where you didn’t even buy a ticket.”

Those dimes were only found in proof sets the Mint sold during that year, not in circulation. But, because proof sets become broken up and coins occasionally enter circulation, it isn’t entirely implausible that one of these could turn up in miraculous pocket change.

1975 No S Proof Dime

Estimated Value: From $50,000 to $500,000
More than its counterpart of 1968, this dime is perhaps the most precious modern mint error, being only two authenticated examples known to exist-the most probably rare dime ever made in modern times.

“One auctioned at Heritage for almost half a million dollars,” said Elena Rodriguez, numismatic historian. According to rumors, this happened because the buyer was said to want to remain anonymous in his purchase, which was rumored to have completed a collection of all the major U. S. coin errors.

The odds against encountering one of these in circulation are virtually nil, but proof sets do get split open, and sometimes their coins get spent by someone who has no idea what they are. A keen eye checking proof dimes from 1975 might-strike numismatic gold, although it’s astronomically unlikely.

The 1982 No-P Roosevelt Dime

Worth between $50 and $1,500. More affordable but still lucrative is the 1982 Philadelphia Dime produced without mint mark due to a die preparation error. Unlike the proof errors presented above, those slipped into circulation.

“Three I’ve found myself just by searching rolls from the bank,” said Jennifer Williams, a teacher from Cleveland and coin error hunter. “That is one of those errors that’s rare enough to be valuable but common enough to be findable.”

In uncirculated condition, strong examples can command more than $1,000, while circulated specimens command anywhere from $50 to $300, depending on condition. The key is to check all 1982 dimes for the mint mark that should be positioned near Roosevelt’s neck.

So, if you happen to go to your local coin shop and happen upon one of these, you might be offered an unbelievably low price, maybe anywhere from $40 to around $400, not really quite cheap, but you know judges what’s just under the price of a Bicentennial Half Dollar.

This Bicentennial quarter, with dual dates

1776 and 1976 along with design of colonial drummer at the reverse-part, was minted in high volume. However, there is a variety of this coin that shows much doubling on the face, as can be seen on the words “LIBERTY” and “IN GOD WE TRUST.”

Examples of these under strong magnification were fleshed out by Frank Wilson, owner of a coin shop outside Philadelphia. “See how the letters look like they’re casting shadows? That’s the doubling effect from the die being impressed twice at slightly different positions.”

This subtle error might possibly remain in countless examples out there, just waiting for a careful finder. This one’s really dependent on condition and strength of the doubling.

The Not So S Silver Bicentennial Quarter Proof

Value Range: $15,000-$40,000
Like the No-S nickel errors, a few silver Bicentennial quarter proofs escaped from the San Francisco Mint without the “S” mint mark indicating the place of striking. These would have only been found in specially struck proof sets sold to collectors.

“One hundred percent authentication is important here,” said Douglas Freeman, a certifying expert I consulted with. “Some people try to take their mint marks off normal quarters, but a zoom on the quarter with a microscope reveals tool marks of extractions.”

Any legitimate piece would utterly lack any sign of the S mint mark ever having existed, along with the mirror-like fields of proof coins. The 40% silver composition gives these coins a sound when dropped hard that is markedly different from that produced by conventionally minted copper-nickel quarters.

Silver Planchet for Bicentennial Quarter

Value Range: $300 – $7,000
While Bicentennial quarters intended for circulation were minted on a copper-nickel planchet, a collector’s version was struck on a 40% silver composition. This manner, errors came about in which normal circulation dies were used together with silver planchets.

“The difference in weight is the first notice,” said Marta Jimenez, a past president of the International Association of Professional Numismatists who has been collecting error coins for two decades. “A regular quarter weighs 5.67 grams; this silver one weighs 5.75 grams. That small difference amounts to serious dollars.”

These incorrect-planchet errors will often show distinctive characteristics around the edge, where the silver composition can be seen without the copper-nickel “sandwich” appearance of normal quarters.

This coin was made on the peso planchet:

Price in the $3,000-$10,000 range
One of the strangest minting errors was when some Bicentennial quarters were struck on planchets for the Philippine peso, which the U.S. Mint was then producing for the Philippine government.

Thomas Greene, an error coin specialist, points to “the small diameter and different metal composition of the coins. They are also substantially lighter than a regular quarter.”

Such great errors happen when blanks from another foreign country somehow mix in the production of regular quarters. The stark contrast from normal coinage gives them a stunning visibility, making such coins treasures of error coin collectors.

Bicentennial Quarter with Major Off-Center Strike

Value Range: $100 – $2,500
Coins struck off-center are those in which the planchet is not properly aligned between the dies during the course of striking. Bicentennial quarters were known to be struck with anywhere from 10% all the way to 90% off-center.

According to auction specialist Derek Thompson, “The sweet spot for value is about 50% off-center, so you still have a full date visible but also a dramatic error that displays well.”

For such a class of errors, a portion of the coin would then be struck normally, whilst another would lie blank because it was not between the dies during striking. The values are higher, the bigger the percentage off-center counts, as long as the date outstands entirely.

Validation Of Your Change

After months of searching and researching these very special coins, I have developed a procedure for checking my change, a matter of seconds that could have potentially life-altering results:

• Denomination segregation first – Use separate piles for dimes and quarters
• Date check – Remove any Mercury dimes (pre-1945) and all quarters from Bicentennial (1976)
• Adequate illumination is necessary – Natural light will bring forth fine errors
• Keep a jeweler’s loupe at all times – 5x to 10x magnification can show details invisible to the naked eye
• Never clean coins that might have some value in your eyes – Even the gentle cleaning will diminish its value by 50% or more.

One thing that most people find most difficult is to train themselves to actually look at their change. “We’re so conditioned to treat coins as therefore worthless we miss the potential treasures,” said Carolyn Martinez, who teaches coin collecting merit badges to Scout troops.

Millionaire Dimes and Bicentennial Quarters : The Thrill of the Hunt

My curiosity piqued through research by the revelation on the possible monetary gain from the discovery of rare coins. But even more interesting were the different personalities I met during the course of my research-a bunch of people who religiously check coin rolls from the banks every week, attend shows and swap meets like it was their holy pilgrimage, become ecstatic over the spotting of anything odd.

“”It connects you to history in a tangible way,”” explained Lewis Montgomery, now 82, a collector since the 1940s. “”Holding a Mercury dime is like holding something that could have easily been in the pocket of a World War II fighter or a factory worker during the Depression.””

For many, that hunt has entertainment value that greatly exceeds the actual money value associated with all the coins examined. And sometimes, that entertainment might pay off with a coin worth hundreds or thousands of time more than its spending value.

So next time you make a purchase and get back change, be sure to examine the coins closely. That distinctive quarter with the drummer boy or that small silver dime may just be your ticket to an unexpected windfall. As veteran dealer Tony Mendez told me when we first met: “”The best time to start checking your change was twenty years ago. The second best time is today.”

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