Silver Dollars & Trade Dollars of the United States - A Complete Encyclopedia

1981-S Anthony Dollar

Coinage Context

Coinage for collectors: All 1981-S Anthony dollars, business strikes as well as Proofs, were minted especially for sale to collectors. Also see commentary under 1981-P.

Numismatic Information

Availability: Although the 1981-S Anthony dollar is scarcer than its cousins of 1979 and 1980, enough exist that obtaining a Mint State or Proof example can be done easily.
Mint sets: 2,908,145 Uncirculated 1981-S Anthony dollars were included in Mint sets sold by the Treasury to collectors; these sets contained the 1981-P, D and S dollars, plus other denominations cent through half dollar-total face value, $4.82; issue price of set: $11.00 (an increase of $2 from the price of the previous year's set).
Poignant question: Where are the more than 500,000 1981-S Uncirculated dollars not sold with the Mint sets?

Varieties
Business strikes:
1. 1981-S. All are of the same variety. Mintmark filled.

Proofs:
1. 1981-S. There are two mintmark styles this year also, both very similar to those of 1979. This year's Type I appearsto be a worn version of 1979's Type II, while the 1981-S Type II is a very new style, very open in the loops, and distinctly different from the Type I and Type II pieces of 1979, and the Type I issue of 1981.(This commentary per Frank Van Valen for this book.)

1981-S Anthony: Market Values

1981-S Anthony: Market Values

1981-S Anthony: Market Values Type II Proofs

1981-S Anthony: Summary of Characteristics

Business Strikes:
Enabling legislation: Act of July 23, 1965 (clad metal), Act of October 10, 1978, and others.
Designer: Frank Gasparro.
Weight and composition: 125 grains (tolerance 4%); outer layers of .750 copper and .250 nickel bonded to inner core of pure copper.
Business strike mintage: 3,492,000.
Comment on availability, MS-65 or better: Scarcest grade level of the issue, but common in an absolute sense.
Comment on availability, MS-64: Scarcer than the following, but still readily available.
Comment on availability, MS-63: Common. Probably, over a million exist.
Comment on availability, MS-60 to 62: Comment as above.
Comment on availability, VF-20 to AU-58: Scarce, as no pieces were placed into circulation by the government.
Characteristics of striking: Most are well struck. Known hoards of Mint State coins: The government may retain some, but this is not certain. About a half million are not accounted for.

Proofs:
Proof mintage: 4,063,083.
Comment on availability, Proof-65 or better: Most common grade level.
Comment on availability, Proof-64: Second most common grade level.
Comment on availability, Proof-63: Scarcer than above.
Comment on availability, Proof-60 to 62: Quite scarce, as the only Proofs fitting this category would be cleaned or lightly mishandled pieces.
Comment on availability, less than Proof-60: Even scarcer, for reasons give above.

Commentary
This is the most plentiful Anthony dollar of the 1981 year.