1895 Morgan Silver Dollar. Proof-61 (NGC). The icy and reflective fields frame beautiful satin luster across the devices. Trivial hairlines are visible under scrutiny but the eye appeal remains strong for this grade level. The focal elements glisten with golden iridescence, while the fields showcase deeper toning in shades of bronze and navy blue. Sharply struck and satisfying to examine in-hand. <p>Just 880 Proof 1895 Morgan dollars were reported and fewer than half of these are available for todays collectors. To date not a single circulation strike 1895 dollar from the Philadelphia Mint has been confirmed, although the possibility exists that at least a few examples might have survived and await discovery by the numismatic community. Of the six examples forwarded to the Assay Commission, researched Roger Burdette shows that only two were destroyed during the Commissions work. One or more of the four remaining coins might have been purchased as souvenirs by the Commission members (which was customary in most years), while any that were not would have been mixed with other coins and released from the mint to banks and sub-treasuries as a matter of routine. Assuming that was the case, and assuming that at least one of those coins avoided being returned to the mint in later years for melting, or meeting a similar fate at the hands of commercial smelters, anywhere from at least one to four circulation strike 1895 dollars from the Philadelphia Mint might still exist. Until such a coin is discovered and identified for the rarity that it is, every collector seeking to assemble a complete date and mint set of Morgan silver dollars must acquire a Proof for the 1895. From the Abigail Collection. From the Abigail Collection.
