Shield Nickels were designed by James Longacre and minted from 1866 to 1883. All coins were made in Philadelphia. 1877 and 1878 Shield Nickels are scarce proof-only dates.
Rays.
Blast white with beautiful cameo contrast and nearly pristine surfaces. A short-lived 'Rays' sub-type. Just 600 minted.
Rays.
1866/1866. Rays. Repunched Date. RPD FS-303 (001.2) A nearly complete second impression of the date can be seen high and to the right of the main impression. This example has attractive nickel-gray surfaces and a solid strike.
No Rays.
Well detailed and nickel shaded.
Brilliant surfaces with faint gold hue and a sharp strike.
Well struck and lustrous. A modest 561,000 minted and very elusive in high grade.
CAC. Fantastic quality with blazing brilliant luster and wonderful, nearly flawless surfaces. Field and device contrast along with subtle gold dusting all blend together and form wonderful eye appeal.
Sharply struck with rich brilliant luster and no significant marks. The terminal obverse die state shows dramatic die breaks.
Intense blazing luster over essentially flawless surfaces with frosted design features and beautiful subtle pastel hues. Super quality with just a single 67+ Cameo grading finer at PCGS.
Light champagne hue. Light reverse spot.