1891 Silver Dollar Value Guide

The 1891 Silver Dollar Value

The 1891 silver dollars from Carson City hold a consistently higher value across the grades.

The other 3 Mints have comparable value up to extra fine. Then, from about uncirculated to mint state, New Orleans is the most valuable, followed by San Francisco and then Philadelphia.  

For prooflike and deep (mirror) prooflike, again, Carson City is the most valuable, followed by New Orleans, then Philadelphia, with San Francisco being the least valuable. 

Proof-strike coins generally hold more value. However, unusually, an MS 68 PL coin from Carson City is 5 times more valuable than a PR 68.    

An N/A for a value below indicates no publicly known examples of that version of the 1891 silver dollar with that grade, or no value information (or not enough) exists for it yet.

Additionally, all values are conservative estimates based on research. Please note all values are subject to change due to the market or circumstances unaccounted for during research and publication. We always recommend doing further research or consulting with a professional.

Melt Value

The 1891 silver dollar’s melt value is approximately $17. The melt value will fluctuate with the market.

Circulation Strike Value Chart

	Coin Names And Coin Values
Grade Names	1891 Silver Dollar	1891-CC Silver Dollar	1891-O Silver Dollar	1891-S Silver Dollar
Good – G	$36	$143	$36	$36
Very Good – VG	$37	$166	$37	$37
Fine – F	$39	$188	$39	$39
Very Fine – VF	$43	$225	$43	$43
Extra Fine – XF	$49	$297	$53	$48
About Uncirculated – AU	$52-$75	$347-$520	$87-$195	$62-$105
Mint State – MS	$95-$15,000 (66)	$630-$53,000 (67)	$222-$75,000 (66)	$130-$17,000 (67)

Circulation Strike Prooflike (PL) Value Chart

	Coin Names And Coin Values
Grade Names	1891 Prooflike Silver Dollar	1891-CC Prooflike Silver Dollar	1891-O Prooflike Silver Dollar	1891-S Prooflike Silver Dollar
MS 58 PL	N/A	$602	N/A	N/A
MS 60 PL	$187	$677	$280	$155
MS 61 PL	$275	$847	$400	$200
MS 62 PL	$600	$925	$537	$262
MS 63 PL	$1,000	$1,200	$1,600	$462
MS 64 PL	$1,600	$2,100	$5,400	$822
MS 65 PL	N/A	$7,200	N/A	$2,800
MS 66 PL	N/A	N/A	N/A	$10,000
MS 67 PL	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
MS 68 PL	N/A	$190,000	N/A	N/A
MS 69 PL	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
MS 70 PL	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A

Circulation Strike Deep (Mirror) Prooflike (DPL/DMPL) Value Chart

	Coin Names And Coin Values
Grade Names	1891 Deep (Mirror) Prooflike Silver Dollar	1891-CC Deep (Mirror) Prooflike Silver Dollar	1891-O Deep (Mirror) Prooflike Silver Dollar	1891-S Deep (Mirror) Prooflike Silver Dollar
MS 60 DPL/DMPL	$445	$775	$765	$242
MS 61 DPL/DMPL	$600	$1,000	$1,100	$337
MS 62 DPL/DMPL	$825	$1,500	$1,800	$193
MS 63 DPL/DMPL	$2,400	$2,200	$4,200	$1,100
MS 64 DPL/DMPL	$5,200	$5,000	$7,100	$4,000
MS 65 DPL/DMPL	$28,000	$48,000	$48,000	$16,000
MS 66 DPL/DMPL	N/A	N/A	N/A	$34,000
MS 67 DPL/DMPL	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
MS 68 DPL/DMPL	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
MS 69 DPL/DMPL	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
MS 70 DPL/DMPL	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A

Proof Strike (PR) Value Chart

1891 Proof Silver Dollar
Grade Names	Coin Values
PR 53	$1,000
PR 55	$1,200
PR 58	$1,400
PR 60	$1,900
PR 61	$2,200
PR 62	$3,000
PR 63	$3,700
PR 64	$4,500
PR 65	$6,700
PR 66	$8,700
PR 67	$19,000
PR 68	$36,000
PR 69	N/A
PR 70	N/A

Cameo (CA/CAM) Proof Strike (PR) Value Chart

1891 Cameo Proof Silver Dollar
Grade Names	Coin Values
PR 60 CA/CAM	N/A
PR 61 CA/CAM	N/A
PR 62 CA/CAM	$3,100
PR 63 CA/CAM	$4,700
PR 64 CA/CAM	$5,900
PR 65 CA/CAM	$9,100
PR 66 CA/CAM	$12,000
PR 67 CA/CAM	$25,000
PR 68 CA/CAM	$54,000
PR 69 CA/CAM	N/A
PR 70 CA/CAM	N/A

Ultra/Deep Cameo (UC/DCAM) Proof Strike (PR) Value Chart

1891 Ultra/Deep Cameo Proof Silver Dollar
Grade Names	Coin Values
PR 60 UC/DCAM	N/A
PR 61 UC/DCAM	N/A
PR 62 UC/DCAM	N/A
PR 63 UC/DCAM	N/A
PR 64 UC/DCAM	$11,000
PR 65 UC/DCAM	N/A
PR 66 UC/DCAM	$31,000
PR 67 UC/DCAM	$45,000
PR 68 UC/DCAM	N/A
PR 69 UC/DCAM	N/A
PR 70 UC/DCAM	N/A

What Makes An 1891 Silver Dollar Valuable?

This coin has a wide range of values. Certain things like mint marks, die varieties, and special designations can affect these values. 

Let’s start with grading.

Grading

Circulation-strike coins have grades from ungradable to mint state 70. Higher grades of the coins are more valuable. 

The higher mint-state grades reach up to tens of thousands of dollars. 

Prooflike and deep (mirror) prooflike coins reach similar values (and higher).

Proof coins start in the low thousands and reach over $54,000.

Rarity

The Mint minted 1891 silver dollars approximately 23,562,735 times across all of its versions. Please see the following list for the breakdown for each version:

• 1891: 8,693,556 minted in Philadelphia^1-2
• 1891-CC: 1,618,000 minted in Carson City^3-4
• 1891-O: 7,954,529 minted in New Orleans^5-6
• 1891-S: 5,296,000 minted in San Francisco^7-8
• 1891 Proof: 650 minted in Philadelphia^17-18

Many 1891 silver dollars survive today despite the 1918 Pittman Act causing the Mint to melt millions down.

Their overall rarity and value from it is comparable to other years of Morgan dollars.

Mint Marks

The 1891 silver dollar has 3 mint marks:

• “CC” mint mark is from Carson City^3-4
• “O” mint mark is from New Orleans^5-6
• “S” mint mark is from San Francisco^7-8

The coins minted in Philadelphia do not have a mint mark.^1-2

The Carson City “CC” mint mark is the most valuable. Out of the other 3, New Orleans is the most valuable at the higher grades, followed by San Francisco, then Philadelphia.   

Strike Types

There are both circulation- and proof-strike 1891 silver dollars.^21-22

Mints used a different process when minting proof coins. They highly polish the planchets (the blank metal disk that becomes a coin), handle them with great care, and strike them several times.

Because of this, the quality of a proof coin is usually far higher than that of a circulation-strike coin. Therefore, they are worth more. 

However, sometimes proof coins are mistakenly put into circulation or not kept well. This results in a grade lower than the standard 60-70 for proof coins. These are “impaired” proofs.   

Philadelphia only struck 650 proof coins. However, a great number of these survived, which doesn’t make them as valuable as other years of proof-strike Morgan dollars. 

Design Variations

This dollar has no design variations.

Special Designations

The 1891 silver dollar has 2 special designations: prooflike and deep (mirror) prooflike.^2,4,6,8-16

They go through the circulation-strike process of minting, but they exhibit some of the characteristics of a proof-strike coin, such as reflectivity.  

These are more valuable than regular circulation-strike coins.

Mints didn’t produce many prooflike and deep (mirror) prooflike coins this year. So, high-quality prooflike or deep (mirror) prooflike 1891 silver dollars have high values.

Error Coins 

Error coins are popular with collectors as they are unique. This usually increases the value of the coin.

Some known examples of 1891 silver dollar error coins that can increase their value are:

• Off-center²³
• Rotated dies³¹
• Struck-through³²

Die Varieties

In the 1960s, Leroy C. Van Allen and A. George Mallis created a list of different die varieties relating to Morgan and peace dollars. These are known as VAMs.

Since the publication of this list (and its subsequent editions), collectors have been keen on collecting the different varieties. This has raised the price of the coins, and now, many VAMs are worth a premium. 

Here are some examples of valuable VAMs for the 1891 silver dollar:

• 1891 VAM-2A (mustache, doubled ear)²⁴
• 1891-CC VAM-3 (spitting eagle, doubled profile and mint mark)²⁵
• 1891-O VAM-1A1 (clashed “DO” and “BERT”)²⁶
• 1891-S VAM-3 (doubled stars and eyelid, near date)²⁷

Composition

The 90% silver 1891 silver dollar is worth its weight in silver. However, this value depends on the fluctuating market.

We strongly advise against melting your coin as it will be more valuable when selling it intact.  

How Do You Know If You Have A Valuable 1891 Silver Dollar?

The best way to know if you have a valuable 1891 silver dollar (or any coin) and to get that value out of it is to have it professionally certified.

However, you can look for many elements to get you started in determining what coin you have.

Let’s start with grading.

Grading

Because the quality and grading of the 1891 silver dollar ranges so greatly, you want to look for a higher-grade coin. It will be worth more. 

For example, a mint-state 66 will have a good strike, but some imperfections are allowed as long as they are not in prominent areas of the coin.

A mint-state 67 will be well-struck and have little imperfections, such as scratches. 

Mint Marks

You will find the mint mark above the “Do” of “Dollar” on the reverse side of your 1891 silver dollar.

If you do not see a mint mark, it means Philadelphia minted your coin.

A “CC” mint mark means your coin is from the Carson City Mint. An “O” mint mark is from New Orleans, and an “S” mint mark is from San Francisco.

Strike Types

The circulation-strike 1891 silver dollars minted in New Orleans have a poor strike quality.^5-6 The strike quality from Philadelphia and San Francisco also varies greatly. Take care in choosing higher grades as they will be more valuable.

Proof coins will be better quality, although many 1891 proof silver dollars have been graded as “impaired.” So if your proof coin shows many imperfections or signs of wear, it may be an impaired proof. However, it is still worth $1,000 and up. 

Cameo and ultra/deep cameo proof versions will show increasing contrast between the mirroring of the fields and frosting of the devices. These are more valuable versions of a proof coin. 

Design Variations

This dollar has no design variations.

Special Designations

One of the key elements of determining if you have a prooflike or deep (mirror) prooflike coin is its reflectivity.

They will be distinctly more reflective and “shiny” than a regular circulation-strike coin. 

This, however, can be hard to determine. So, we recommend that you work with a professional when assessing your coin for special designations.

Prooflike or deep (mirror) prooflike coins are quite scarce for the 1891 silver dollar, so they are much more valuable.

Error Coins

Sometimes, it is very easy to spot an error coin by just looking at it. Other times, it can be harder. 

An off-center error is a simple error to detect. Look at your coin and see if the design is struck to one side. Parts of the design may be missing. 

For rotated die errors, you will want to hold your coin and then flip it over. If the positions of the designs do not match, this is a rotated die error. The degree to which the design is off can vary. 

Struck-through errors can be a little harder to establish as it really depends on what item was struck through to the coin. 

For this error, you want to look for imprints, lines, or grooves that are not supposed to be there and that are more than scratches or imperfections from wear.   

Die Varieties

Here are some pointers to get you started identifying an 1891 silver dollar VAM variety.

1891 VAM-2A (Mustache, Doubled Ear)

For this variety, a die break happened on Lady Liberty’s upper lip, giving her the look of having a “mustache.”²⁴ 

Some varieties have a full mustache, and others just show the signs at the top. The full mustache is much more valuable.

You will also find her lower earlobe strongly doubled. 

1891-CC VAM-3 (Spitting Eagle, Doubled Profile And Mint Mark)

This is an amusing but relatively common variety.²⁵ It’s still popular, though.

For the “spitting eagle,” look at your coin’s reverse side. You will see a distinct die gouge below the eagle’s beak. It is this gouge that gives the appearance of the eagle spitting. 

The “CC” mint mark is doubled and tilted to the left.

Another die gouge is by the eagle’s foot next to the arrowheads.   

On the obverse side of your coin, Liberty’s profile is lightly doubled from her chin up to her nose.

1891-O VAM-1A1 (Clashed “DO” And “BERT”)

This variety significantly increases the value of the coin.²⁶ It is a very popular variety and valuable even in about uncirculated grades.

You can see very clear die clashing with this coin.

This is most clearly visible on the coin’s reverse side. Look below the eagle’s tail feathers for a strongly defined “E.” To the left, you will see the edge of “B,” and to the right, you will see the start of “T” from “Liberty.”

This is the most strongly clashed raised “E” seen on any Morgan dollar.  

On the obverse side of your coin, look at the right wheat leaf in Liberty’s hair. You should see evidence of a clashed “O” from the mint mark on the reverse side. 

Below the “I” of “Pluribus” there will also be a clashed “Do” from the reverse’s “Dollar.”

1891-S VAM-3 (Doubled Stars And Eyelid, Near Date)

On the obverse side of your coin, look at the stars on the left-hand side.²⁷ They should be clearly doubled.

Lady Liberty’s eyelid will also be doubled. 

The date at the bottom of the coin will be further left than its normal position. 

Additional Information About The 1891 Silver Dollar

History

Designed by and named after the British engraver George T. Morgan, the Morgan silver dollar saw continuous minting between 1878 and 1904. It returned for 1 year in 1921, then again in 2021 and on as a collectible coin.

The Mint produced part of the 1891 and 1891-O mintage from trade dollars and trade dollar bullion. It did not separate or distinguish these from the rest of the mintage.

In 1891, the Director of the Mint, Edward O. Leech, sent out a call to artists for new designs for the silver dollar, half dollar, quarter dollar, and the dime. After evaluating the submitted designs, the determination was that none were a significant enough improvement to warrant a change. So, the Morgan silver dollar lived on.

^{Sources: 1-8,21-22}

The Coin’s Obverse Side

On the obverse side of the 1891 silver dollar is the motto of the United States of America, “E Pluribus Unum,” which curves the top of the rim. This means “Out of many, one.” 

At the bottom is the year “1891.” 

7 stars separate them on the left and 6 on the right. 

In the center of the coin is the left profile of Lady Liberty. She wears a headband with the word “Liberty” written on it, a cap, and flowers in her hair. 

Morgan’s initial “M” is at the base of her neck.

^{Sources: 1-2}

The Coin’s Reverse Side

In the center of the reverse side of the 1891 silver dollar is an eagle with spread wings. 

Above the eagle are the words “In God We Trust.” Below the eagle is a laurel wreath tied with a bow. Morgan’s initial “M” is on the left loop of the bow.

If present, underneath the bow is the mint mark.

 “CC” represents Carson City. 

“O” represents New Orleans. 

“S” represents San Francisco. 

Circling the coin’s rim are the words “United States of America” at the top and “One Dollar” at the bottom. A star is between these two on each side.  

^{Sources: 1-8}

Sources

1891 Silver Dollar Value Guide Sources