Vital Stats.
Designer: James Barton Longacre
Content: 90% gold 10% other
Diameter: 20.5 millimeters
Edge: Reeded
Weight: 5.02 grams
Mint Mark Location: Below the wreath on the reverse.
None - Philadelphia, PA
D - Dahlonega, GA
O - New Orleans, LA
S - San Francisco, CA
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Typical
Three Dollar Gold Coin
Large DOLLARS vs. Small DOLLARS example
The three dollar coin has two different reverse types. The first was the small
"DOLLARS" which appeared only in 1854. The second was the large "DOLLARS" which
appeared throughout the life of the issue. Many dates have a bold "outlining" of
letters and other devices, which is often mistaken for a double strike. More likely,
this is the result of excessive forcing of the design punches, causing a slight
appearance of sloping "shoulders". Sometimes, this is thought to be part of the coin's design.
Three dollar gold pieces were struck at four mints: Philadelphia, San Francisco,
New Orleans and Dahlonega. This was a very unpopular denomination and mintages
were extremely limited. This makes it very difficult to complete a collection of
the denomination.
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