Mercury Dime Values: Key Dates and Full Bands Explained
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Short on time? The essentials
- The Mercury dime, officially the Winged Liberty Head dime, was struck at Philadelphia, Denver, and San Francisco from late 1916 through 1945. Adolph Weinman designed both sides.
- Every genuine Mercury dime weighs 2.500 grams, measures 17.91 mm across, carries 118 reeds on the edge, and is 90 percent silver with 10 percent copper.
- Silver content per coin is 0.07234 troy ounces. That number sets a metal floor on every common date regardless of wear.
- The 1916-D is the key date with a mintage of 264,000 pieces. It is the scarcest regular-issue Mercury dime and the coin most often faked with an added D mint mark.
- The 1942/41 and 1942/41-D are doubled-die overdates caused by the die taking impressions from both a 1941 hub and a 1942 hub. Certified examples command strong premiums.
- Full Bands, sometimes labeled FB or FSB by graders, means the two horizontal bands across the middle of the fasces on the reverse are fully and separately struck. Full Bands examples of certain dates sell for many multiples of the plain grade.
- No dimes were struck for 1922, 1932, or 1933. The design ran until 1945 when the Roosevelt dime replaced it.
- Federal law does not prohibit melting 90 percent silver United States coins. The one-cent and five-cent melt ban under 31 CFR Part 82 does not extend to silver dimes, quarters, or halves.
On this page
- The Mercury dime at a glance
- The design story: Weinman and the winged Liberty
- Verified physical specifications
- Key dates that command a real premium
- The 1942/41 and 1942/41-D overdates
- Full Bands and why they multiply the price
- What common Mercury dimes are actually worth
- The 1916-D counterfeit problem
- How to identify what you actually have
- Silver melt floor: worked math on one Mercury dime
- What your Mercury dime is probably not
- Mercury dime FAQ
The Mercury dime at a glance
The Mercury dime, officially the Winged Liberty Head dime, is a 90 percent silver ten-cent coin struck by the United States Mint from late 1916 through 1945. Adolph Weinman designed both sides.
The obverse shows Liberty facing left wearing a winged Phrygian cap. The winged cap led the public to nickname the coin after the Roman god Mercury, though Weinman intended the wings to symbolize freedom of thought.
The reverse shows a fasces, a bundle of rods bound around an ax, next to an olive branch. The mint mark, if any, sits on the reverse between the E in ONE and the base of the olive branch. Philadelphia strikes carry no mint mark.
The design story: Weinman and the winged Liberty
Adolph Weinman was a German-born American sculptor who had trained under Augustus Saint-Gaudens. In 1916, the United States Treasury chose Weinman to redesign both the dime and the half dollar, ending the 25-year run of the Barber coinage.
The model for the obverse Liberty is widely reported to be Elsie Stevens, the wife of the poet Wallace Stevens. Weinman lived in the same New York apartment building as the Stevens family, which is where the sittings took place.
The fasces on the reverse was a Roman symbol of civic authority long before the 1922 rise of Italian fascism attached a different association to it. The olive branch beside the fasces was included to signal peace through strength, which was the standard American reading of the emblem in 1916.
Verified physical specifications
Every genuine Mercury dime matches the same measurable specifications. The table below is the identification baseline. A coin sold as a Mercury dime that does not match these numbers is a fake, a plated novelty, or a completely different coin.
| Attribute | Value |
|---|---|
| Face value | Ten United States cents |
| Composition | 90 percent silver and 10 percent copper |
| Weight | 2.500 grams |
| Diameter | 17.91 mm (0.705 inch) |
| Edge | 118 reeds |
| Silver content | 0.07234 troy ounces of pure silver per coin |
| Years of issue | 1916 through 1945 (no coins struck in 1922, 1932, or 1933) |
| Mints | Philadelphia (no mint mark), Denver (D), San Francisco (S) |
| Designer | Adolph A. Weinman (obverse and reverse) |
| Total mintage of series | 2,677,232,488 pieces per Mint Director Nellie Tayloe Ross |
Sources: Wikipedia Mercury dime entry citing the U.S. Mint composition record and Mint Director reports. Checked August 2026.
Key dates that command a real premium
The Mercury dime series has a short and well-defined list of scarce issues. These are the coins that any serious buyer will look for first and pay real money to secure in original condition.
| Issue | Why it is a key |
|---|---|
| 1916-D | The series key date. Mintage of 264,000 pieces, the lowest regular-issue mintage in the run. Denver struck only quarters through most of 1916 to fill a large order. |
| 1921 and 1921-D | Low mintages because the postwar economic downturn suppressed coin demand. Both dates are semi-keys in circulated grades and rare in mint state. |
| 1926-S | A San Francisco issue with a low mintage. Scarce in the higher grades and often weakly struck on the fasces bands. |
| 1942/41 | Philadelphia overdate. The obverse die was struck once from a 1941 hub and once from a 1942 hub. A doubled digit is visible under magnification. |
| 1942/41-D | The Denver counterpart of the same overdate. Less visible to the naked eye than the Philadelphia version. |
| 1945-S Micro S | A San Francisco variety with a smaller-than-normal mint mark punch. Distinct enough to warrant a separate grading label. |
Source: Wikipedia Mercury dime entry, confirmed against Lange, The Complete Guide to Mercury Dimes as cited in the article. Checked August 2026.
Dollar values on these keys are highly grade-sensitive and move with the auction market. Use current sold-listing data from an established auction house or the population report of an independent grading service to price a specific coin. Do not accept a verbal offer without a certified grade first.
The 1942/41 and 1942/41-D overdates
The 1942/41 and 1942/41-D are the two headline varieties of the wartime Mercury dime. Both are doubled-die errors, not true overdates in the older sense of the term. Both are legitimate and both carry substantial premiums when authenticated.
Until the 1990s, coin dies had to be struck twice by the master hub for the design to transfer fully. On these two dies, one impression came from a 1941-dated hub and the second impression came from a 1942-dated hub. The result is a 1 visible inside the 2 of the date.
The Philadelphia 1942/41 is the more visually obvious of the two. The Denver 1942/41-D shows a fainter doubling that is harder to spot with the naked eye. Both are widely counterfeited, and both require certification from an independent grading service before any serious purchase.
Full Bands and why they multiply the price
The reverse of the Mercury dime shows a fasces, and the fasces has two horizontal bands crossing its middle. On a fully struck coin, those two bands are separated by a distinct line. On a weakly struck coin, the bands merge into a single flat surface.
An independent grading service will add the label Full Bands, sometimes written FB or FSB, when the two central bands are complete and separated. The Full Bands designation only applies to sharply struck examples, which are scarcer than the same coin in a plain grade.
Full Bands premiums vary by date. On common Philadelphia issues the premium is real but modest. On weak-strike dates such as most 1920s San Francisco and Denver issues, a certified Full Bands coin can sell for many multiples of a plain example in the same numeric grade.
Full Bands is only assigned by certified graders. A raw coin with visible bands is not the same as a certified Full Bands coin. The market pays a premium for the third-party attestation, not for the visual alone.
What common Mercury dimes are actually worth
The honest answer for the version most readers own is that a common circulated Mercury dime is worth its silver content. The series ran for 30 years and total production exceeded 2.6 billion pieces. Supply on the collector market is deep for common dates.
Three factors move the value on any Mercury dime above the silver floor.
Condition is the largest lever. A well-worn common date trades at melt. A sharp uncirculated coin certified by an independent grading service can trade for a real premium above the metal.
Date and mint mark matter. A common 1940s Philadelphia coin sits at the bottom of the price ladder. A 1916-D, a 1921, a 1926-S, or a 1942/41 carries a real premium even in low grades.
Strike quality is the third factor and it is unique to this series. Any Mercury dime that qualifies for the Full Bands label from an independent grader jumps a full price tier over a plain example.
The 1916-D counterfeit problem
The 1916-D is the most-faked Mercury dime because the price gap between a common 1916 Philadelphia strike and a genuine 1916-D is enormous. The standard counterfeit method is to take an authentic 1916 Philadelphia dime and add a D mint mark to the reverse.
Added mint marks show a set of tell-tale signs. The D is often the wrong shape or size for a 1916 Denver punch. The letter can sit at the wrong height above the olive branch. Under magnification, a seam or a tool mark often surrounds the base of the letter.
A separate counterfeit approach uses cast copies of a genuine 1916-D. Cast coins are usually detectable by weight, by a slightly smaller diameter after casting shrinkage, and by a softness of the design details compared to a struck coin.
Any 1916-D purchase should be certified by an established independent grading service. A verbal appraisal or a photograph review from a dealer is not sufficient at that price level.
How to identify what you actually have
The steps below are the sequence a serious hobbyist runs on a Mercury dime found in a jar, a drawer, or an inherited collection. Follow them in order before treating the coin as anything more than silver bullion.
- Confirm the coin is a Mercury dime. The obverse shows Liberty facing left wearing a winged cap, with the word LIBERTY around the top. The reverse shows a fasces and an olive branch. Roosevelt dimes struck from 1946 onward show a president facing left with no wings.
- Weigh the coin on a jewelry scale. A genuine Mercury dime weighs 2.500 grams. A digital scale that reads to two decimal places is enough. A weight far outside 2.4 to 2.6 grams points to a fake or a plated non-silver base.
- Check the date and mint mark. The date sits below the profile on the obverse. The mint mark, if any, sits on the reverse between the E in ONE and the base of the olive branch. A missing mint mark means Philadelphia.
- Screen for the key dates and varieties. Look specifically for 1916-D, 1921, 1921-D, 1926-S, 1942/41, 1942/41-D, and 1945-S Micro S. Any candidate deserves a closer look under 10x magnification before conclusions.
- Inspect the reverse fasces bands. The two central horizontal bands set the Full Bands potential. Fully separated and complete bands are the visual precondition for the FB label from an independent grader.
- Do not clean the coin. Any polishing, dipping, or scrubbing lowers the grade an independent grader will assign. Cleaning can drop the value by half or more. Preserve the coin exactly as found.
- Submit high-value candidates to an independent grading service. Only a certified authentication carries weight in the marketplace on a key date, a suspected overdate, or a coin that may qualify as Full Bands.
Silver melt floor: worked math on one Mercury dime
What your Mercury dime is probably not
Most Mercury dimes that reach a shop counter or a resale listing are not what the owner is hoping for. It is more useful to know the honest patterns than to sell yourself on a possibility. The list below is what a typical Mercury dime most often turns out to be.
A common circulated Philadelphia coin from the 1940s. This is the most common outcome. It is a real coin, and its value is its silver content plus a small collector premium at best. Uncirculated common-date examples trade higher, but nowhere near the key-date range.
A common circulated D or S coin from the 1930s or 1940s. Genuine, silver, but common. Value is metal-driven with a small premium for the mint mark on the scarcer dates.
A cleaned or polished coin. Someone applied a chemical dip or a soft cloth to brighten the surface. Certified graders assign a details grade instead of a numeric grade, which typically cuts value by half or more compared to an original piece.
A counterfeit 1916-D with an added mint mark. A genuine 1916 Philadelphia dime that a bad actor has altered by attaching or engraving a D on the reverse. Certification detects most examples on sight.
A cast copy of a key date. A soft-detail replica made from a mold of a genuine coin. Weight and diameter usually fall outside the standard, and a magnifier reveals soft edges on the design.
A jewelry-mounted or holed coin. Silver Mercury dimes were commonly used in bracelets, rings, and pendants. A coin with a mount hole, a solder trace, or a bezel mark is a damaged coin regardless of date. Value is silver content plus a small collectible discount.
A real key date, undiscovered. This outcome is possible, and it is the reason to run the identification steps on every Mercury dime you find. It is also rare enough that it should not shape financial decisions before an independent grader confirms the coin.
Mercury dime FAQ
What is a Mercury dime worth today?
A common circulated Mercury dime is worth its silver content, which is 0.07234 troy ounces of pure silver per coin. At a silver spot price of 30 dollars per troy ounce, that works out to about 2.17 dollars per coin as a pure metal floor. Key dates like the 1916-D and the 1942/41 overdates, plus any coin certified as Full Bands by an independent grader, trade for real premiums above that floor.
Are Mercury dimes made of silver?
Yes. Every regular-issue Mercury dime struck from 1916 through 1945 is 90 percent silver and 10 percent copper. Each coin contains 0.07234 troy ounces of pure silver. The design was replaced by the Roosevelt dime in 1946, which stayed in 90 percent silver through 1964 before shifting to a copper-nickel clad composition.
Why is the coin called a Mercury dime when it depicts Liberty?
The obverse depicts Liberty wearing a winged Phrygian cap, which the general public associated with the Roman god Mercury. The designer Adolph Weinman stated the wings were meant to symbolize freedom of thought, not the messenger god. The popular Mercury dime nickname stuck and remains the standard collector name today.
What is the rarest Mercury dime?
The 1916-D is the key date of the series with a regular-issue mintage of 264,000 pieces, the lowest in the run. It commands strong premiums in every grade. The 1942/41 and 1942/41-D overdates and the 1926-S in high grades are the other structurally scarce issues that reach the highest price tier.
What does Full Bands mean on a Mercury dime?
Full Bands, abbreviated FB or FSB by graders, means the two horizontal bands across the middle of the fasces on the reverse are complete and separated by a distinct line. A weakly struck coin merges those bands into one flat surface. The Full Bands designation is only assigned by independent grading services and can multiply a coin's value on weak-strike dates.
How do I spot a fake 1916-D Mercury dime?
The most common fake is a genuine 1916 Philadelphia dime with a D mint mark added by hand. Look for the wrong D shape or size, an incorrect position between the E in ONE and the olive branch, and tool marks around the base of the letter under magnification. Weight below or above the 2.500 gram standard also flags a cast copy. Any 1916-D purchase should be certified by an independent grading service before you wire funds.
Is it legal to melt Mercury dimes for their silver?
Yes. Federal law does not prohibit melting 90 percent silver United States coins. The melt ban under 31 CFR Part 82 covers one-cent and five-cent coins only and does not extend to silver dimes, quarters, or half dollars. That said, a scarce date is worth more intact than melted, so the identification steps above should run before any coin goes to the refiner.
Should I get my Mercury dime professionally graded?
Grading has a fee, so it is not worth submitting a common circulated coin worth silver plus a small premium. Grading is essential for a suspected 1916-D, any 1921 or 1921-D in nice shape, a candidate 1942/41 or 1942/41-D, any coin that may qualify as Full Bands, or a 1945-S Micro S. A certified grade sets the coin's market value in a way a verbal appraisal cannot.
Sources
- Wikipedia, Mercury dime. Series 1916 to 1945, designer Adolph Weinman, official name Winged Liberty Head dime, obverse Liberty in winged Phrygian cap with Elsie Stevens as the reported model, reverse fasces and olive branch, three-mint production (Philadelphia, Denver, San Francisco), mass 2.500 grams, diameter 17.91 mm, 118 reeds, composition 0.900 silver and 0.100 copper, silver content 0.07234 troy ounces per coin, no dimes struck for 1922, 1932, or 1933, 1916-D key date mintage of 264,000 pieces, 1942/41 and 1942/1-D doubled-die overdate mechanism, and total series mintage of 2,677,232,488 per Mint Director Nellie Tayloe Ross. Article cites David Lange, The Complete Guide to Mercury Dimes. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mercury_dime. Checked August 2026.
- Wikipedia, Dime (United States coin). Confirms the 90 percent silver, 10 percent copper composition standard for United States dimes from 1873 through 1964, the 2.500 gram mass, the 17.91 mm diameter, and the transition to a copper-nickel clad composition beginning with the Roosevelt dime in 1965. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dime_(United_States_coin). Checked August 2026.
- United States Mint, Coin Specifications and Historical Composition. Reference for the standard 2.500 gram weight, 17.91 mm diameter, and 90 percent silver composition of United States dimes from 1873 through 1964. usmint.gov/learn/history-and-artistry. Checked August 2026.
- Electronic Code of Federal Regulations. 31 CFR Part 82: Prohibition on the Exportation, Melting, or Treatment of 5-Cent and One-Cent Coins. Treasury regulation limited to one-cent and five-cent coins. The regulation does not prohibit melting silver dimes, quarters, or half dollars. ecfr.gov/current/title-31/subtitle-B/chapter-I/part-82. Checked August 2026.
- Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School. 18 U.S. Code section 331: Mutilation, diminution, and falsification of coins. Federal statute cited for defacement and fraudulent alteration of U.S. coins, including altered mint marks. law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/331. Checked August 2026.
- Internal Revenue Code section 408(m) and section 1(h)(4). Governs collectibles tax treatment on gains from coin sales outside a retirement account. Office of the Law Revision Counsel. uscode.house.gov. Checked August 2026.