U.S. Mint coin reference

1840-1873 Liberty Seated Silver Dollar

Liberty Seated dollars are large silver coins from the pre-Trade dollar era.

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1840-1873 Liberty Seated Silver Dollar image

Coin specifications and design

Years made: 1840-1873

Country: United States

Denomination: One dollar

Category: Circulating coin

Composition: 90% silver, 10% copper

Silver fineness: 90%

Silver weight: 0.7734 oz ASW

Weight: 26.73 g

Diameter: 38.1 mm

Thickness: Approx. 2.4 mm

Edge: Reeded

Designer: Christian Gobrecht

Design identification

Obverse: Liberty seated on a rock holding shield and pole.

Liberty Seated Silver Dollar history

The Liberty Seated silver dollar entered regular production in 1840, following the experimental Gobrecht dollars of the 1830s. Christian Gobrecht’s seated Liberty obverse was paired with a large heraldic eagle reverse. Dollar production varied sharply as silver prices, bullion flows, and international trade affected demand for the denomination. IN GOD WE TRUST was added in 1866, and the series ended in 1873 when the Coinage Act replaced it in part with the Trade dollar for overseas commerce.