In such cases, look for the following things. There is a good chance that a majority of makers of these reproduced coins might also sell these counterfeit coins too (without the label of “COPY”). The size of this label should not be less than one-sixth the diameter of the coin, with the ideal dimensions being 2 mm X 6 mm. Usually, reproduced vintage coins have to be marked with the word “COPY”. It is therefore of uttermost importance that you are able to identify what is authentic and what is not.Īccording to the Numismatic Guaranty Corporation, the key to spot a fake 1942 dime is to observe it closely― the coin says it all. In this age of technology, the biggest challenge the numismatic world faces is of counterfeits flooding the vintage coin market. The coins minted in San Francisco didn’t seem to have this defect. The same defect was observed in coins minted in Denver (usually denoted by the symbol “D”) but wasn’t very prominent, and it took almost two decades to discover this defect. Several other dates serve as conditional keys and semi-keys, including many of the branch-mint issues from the teens and '20s.It has been observed that this defect is more prominent on the dimes minted in Philadelphia, and this was detected almost immediately. While the least expensive issues are from the last years of the series, many type set collectors prefer examples from the first years of the Mercury dime period, during which many notable key and semi-key issues was released, including the 1916-D, 1921, and 1921-D. In most cases, the least expensive type representatives from the Mercury dime will be found among the pieces issued from 1941 through 1945, certainly the most prolific era for this series in terms of overall mintages and availability of examples in the Gem Mint State grades. The Mercury dime type was in use from 1916 through 1945, with most issues struck from 1916 through 1931 proving much scarcer than those made from 1934 on none was issued in 1932 or 1933. Weinman and debuted in 1916, replacing the Barber (or Liberty Head) dime designed by Charles E. The Mercury dime, more formally known as the Winged Liberty Head dime, was designed by Adolph A.

1942 Dime Mercury