1916 Barber Dime Error List with Pictures
Two different 1916-S Barber dime errors each brought $1,150 in past sales. One lost part of its design in an off-center strike; the other kept its whole design inside a wider outline.
This 1916 Barber dime error list covers five types with estimated values of $25–$2,000. Read on to compare raised marks, interrupted details, and unusual edges, keeping these Barber coins separate from 1916 Mercury dimes.
1. 1916-S Barber Dime Obverse Die Failure (Estimated Up to $100)
An unusual raised mark can come from damage to a die, the steel tool that stamps the coin. Silver fills an opening in the tool and leaves extra metal on the dime.
The San Francisco report describes a failing front tool without naming a precise crack path. It also does not establish a large rim-connected lump.
The actual shape must guide the description. A narrow ridge and a broad raised break are different stages of tool damage.
A peeling layer or a scratch can look unusual too. Those affect the coin’s metal in different ways and need separate checks.
Estimated Value
Estimate $25–$100 for a worn example with modest, clearly identified front-tool damage. The source’s approximate $46 value fits this range, but is not a verified auction result.
A narrow raised line usually attracts less attention than a large break that interrupts lettering or the portrait. Condition still matters.
The report does not establish a major rim break. Its modest feature should not automatically receive the price of a much more dramatic error.
How to Identify
Move a light across the front while inspecting the feature with a magnifier. Decide whether its center rises above the surface or cuts into it.
A tool crack leaves a raised line. A sharp trench or peeling flap points toward another explanation, even if all lie near Liberty.
Confirm the Barber portrait, 1916, and S below the wreath on the back. Do not compare it with the different Mercury design from the same year.
Use a scale against 2.50 grams and calipers against 17.9 mm. Inspect the edge grooves for later damage.
The useful first clue is raised original metal joined to the surrounding struck design, not simply an unusual mark.
2. 1916-S Barber Dime Struck Through Foreign Material (Estimated Up to $250)
A patch can remain weak while the surrounding design looks normally struck. Material between the blank and the stamping tool prevented the silver from receiving the full picture.
A solid object may leave a hollow, while softer material can block fine details. This is called a strike-through.
The year guide reports a 1916-S graded XF45, meaning wear with strong detail remaining. It does not identify the object or exact position.
Grease, wire, or fabric should therefore not be assigned to this coin by guesswork. Its surface must show the actual interruption.
Estimated Value
Estimate $50–$250 for a worn example with a clear local strike-through. The guide reports more than $110 for the XF45 coin, without supplying the original auction record.
That remains a reported result. A recognizable impression on otherwise sound surfaces can support the stronger end of the estimate.
General softness and ordinary wear do not receive the same allowance. Missing detail needs evidence of something blocking the strike, rather than being rubbed away afterward.
How to Identify
Look at where the affected patch meets normal design under a magnifier. A local obstruction can leave nearby letters or other details much sharper than the blocked area.
Compare both faces with an ordinary 1916-S Barber dime. Change the light angle to separate a pressed impression from a gouge or rough corrosion.
A gouge may push silver into sharp lips beside the cut. A peeling layer opens within the coin instead.
Use a scale and calipers against 2.50 grams and 17.9 mm, allowing for wear. Inspect the grooved edge too.
The direct clue is interrupted detail beside naturally struck surroundings, without guessing what unseen material caused it.
3. 1916 Barber Dime Clipped Planchet (Estimated Up to $350)
The Philadelphia example appeared in an old error-coin catalog as Choice AU+, a seller description for an attractive, nearly unworn coin. Its clip size and shape were not specified.
A clip begins with missing metal before the design is struck. The incomplete blank still passes through the press.
Metal near the existing gap moves differently from metal around a complete disc. The nearby design and rim can preserve evidence of that difference.
The coin’s date and absence of a mintmark identify the reported issue. Neither the grade description nor the word clip proves a particular curved or straight shape.
Estimated Value
Estimate $75–$350 for genuine worn through lightly worn Philadelphia clips. This is an estimate for comparable coins, not a selling price from the old catalog.
A small, hard-to-see gap generally belongs lower than an obvious clip on an attractive coin. A readable date and original surfaces also help.
Choice AU+ was the seller’s description, not a modern numerical certification. The range assumes the missing section formed before striking, rather than being cut away later.
How to Identify
Weigh the loose coin on a scale against the original 2.50 grams. Missing metal can reduce weight, but so can wear or a later cut.
Measure an intact span with calipers against 17.9 mm. Inspect the remaining edge grooves and confirm the full date.
Use a magnifier at both ends of the gap. Look for naturally struck metal meeting the boundary, rather than file lines or a cut through finished detail.
The opposite rim may show weakness, though that clue varies. Do not require a curve when the catalog gives no shape.
The useful match is original rim formation around a gap that was already present during striking.
4. 1916-S Barber Dime Uncentered Broadstrike (Estimated Up to $1,750)
The whole design remains on this dime even though its outline is wider on one side. The blank sat unevenly during a strike without normal support from the collar.
The collar is the metal ring that limits width and forms the edge grooves. Without its restraint, silver spreads farther outward.
NGC identified this example as an uncentered broadstrike and graded it MS65. That means no circulation wear and few marks.
The complete design separates it from an off-center strike that loses outer details. An uneven outline alone cannot tell the two types apart.
Estimated Value
Mint Error News reports $1,150 for the MS65 coin in its February 2009 auction results. Estimate $400–$1,750 from lightly worn through attractive unworn examples.
That well-preserved coin provides a stronger-condition comparison. It does not make every widened dime worth more than a thousand dollars.
Original shine, visible expansion, and undamaged details affect the price. Later flattening can widen a coin too, so the appearance of extra width needs a genuine striking explanation.
How to Identify
Compare the entire design with a normal Barber dime. Trace the outer letters and other details to confirm they remain on the expanded metal.
Use calipers across several directions against the usual 17.9 mm diameter. A scale should remain near 2.50 grams if no metal was lost.
Inspect the border and edge with a magnifier. Missing normal grooves can support failed ring contact, while hammered detail or repeated dents suggest later damage.
The published MS65 example shows the uneven outward spread. Keep its full outline visible in the comparison.
The quick distinction is a complete, naturally struck picture inside extra metal, rather than a picture partly lost beyond the edge.
5. 1916-S Barber Dime Off-Center Strike (Estimated Up to $2,000)
Part of the design misses the blank on an off-center strike. Across from that lost detail, an area of silver remains untouched.
The metal disc sat too far to one side between the stamping tools. Both faces should reflect the same misplaced position.
A PCGS AU55 example was struck 7% off center. AU55 means only light circulation wear.
Separate reports identify a 3% AU58 coin and a 10% NGC MS62 example. The latter is unworn with noticeable marks; their different percentages and grades must stay with their own coins.
Estimated Value
The 7% AU55 example sold for $1,150 in January 2005. Estimate $250–$2,000 for readable-date examples from circulated through attractive unworn condition.
The amount of shift does not determine price by itself. The date, surviving S, and surface quality also matter.
Do not give the 3% or 10% examples this sale price automatically. A larger blank area can look dramatic while leaving fewer details needed to identify the coin.
How to Identify
Follow the border on both faces to find where design runs beyond the metal. Compare that missing detail with the blank area at the opposite side.
If the whole design remains inside a wider outline, examine it as a possible broadstrike. If only one face shifts, check for a moved stamping tool instead.
Use a magnifier to read 1916 and the surviving S below the wreath. Inspect the remaining edge grooves for trimming.
Check a loose coin with a scale and calipers against 2.50 grams and 17.9 mm, recording its changed outline.
The direct sign is matching incomplete designs beside original untouched metal on both faces, rather than one wide rim.
Conclusion
Estimated values for these 1916 Barber errors run from $25 to $2,000. Begin with the Barber portrait and wreath so a same-year Mercury dime does not become the wrong comparison.
A broadstrike keeps its whole design inside a wider outline, while an off-center strike loses design beside untouched metal. For smaller marks, separate raised tool damage, a blocked strike, and missing blank metal before applying a price.