Coins Terminology

Numismatic Terms

The glossary will help you understand terms and acronyms commonly used in the field of coin collecting, or numismatics.

• Abrasions - Light rubbing or scuffing from friction, not to be confused with hairlines or bag marks.

• Adjustment marks - Small striations or file marks found on early United States coins. Made during planchet preparation (before striking) by drawing a file across the planchet to remove excess metal, resulting in a series of parallel grooves.This was done to reduce the planchet to its proper weight.

• Alloy - A combination of two or more metals.

• Annealing - The heating and cooling process by which planchets are softened to allow the metal to flow more smoothly during the strike.

• Bag mark - A surface mark, usually in the form of a nick, acquired by a coin when it came into contact with others in a mint bag. Bag marks are most common on large and heavy silver and gold coins.

• Blemishes - Minor nicks, marks, flaws, or spots of discoloration that mar the surface of a coin.

• Bronze - An alloy of copper, zinc, and tin.

• Bullion - Uncoined gold or silver in the form of ingots or plate.

• Business strike - A coin intended for circulation in the channels of commerce (in contrast to a proof coin specifically struck for collectors).

• Choice - An adjective used to describe an especially select specimen of a given grade. For example, Choice AU-55 represents an especially select About Uncirculated coin (typical About Uncirculated being AU-50).

• Cleaning - Refers to removing dirt or otherwise altering the appearance of a coin through the use of abrasive materials that mar or scratch the surface in a detectable fashion.

• Commemorative - A coin issued to mark a special event or to honor an outstanding person.

• Counter stamp - A design, group of letters, or other mark stamped on a coin for special identification or advertising purposes. Counterstamped coins are graded the way regular (uncounterstamped) coins are, but the nature and condition of the counterstamp must also be described.

• DDO or D.D.O. - Doubled Die Obverse, an obverse die which exhibits doubled images in one or more places.

• DDR or D.D.R. - Doubled Die Reverse, a reverse die which exhibits doubled images in one or more places.

• Denticles or dentils - The tooth like raised design around the rims of some coins. They are part of the die design.

• Designer - The artist who creates a coin's principal devices.

• Details - Small features and fine lines in a coin design. Particularly those seen in hair, leaves, wreaths and feathers.

• Die - A metal object used to impress a design into a planchet. Dies are usually engraved incuse, so that the devices and inscriptions they produce will be in relief.

• Dipping - The act of removing tarnish, surface dirt, or changing the coloration of a coin by applying chemicals, or otherwise artificially treating it with liquids.

• Disme - The early spelling of the word "dime," one tenth of a dollar.

• Double eagle - A United States twenty dollar gold coin.

• Eagle - A United States ten dollar gold coin.

• Edge - The area which borders a coin's surface. Also referred to as coin's "third side." Edges of United States coins may be Reeded, lettered or plain.

• Electrotype - A counterfeit coin made by the electroplating process.

• Engraver - A person who cuts a design into a coinage die.

• Field - The portion of a coin's surface not used for a design or inscription.

• Fineness - Purity of gold or silver, normally expressed in the terms of one thousand parts.

• Grade - The condition or amount of wear that a coin has received. Generally, the less wear a given coin has received, the more valuable it is. Coins are graded on the A.N.A. numerical system from About Good-3 to Perfect Uncirculated-70.

• Hairlines - A series of minute lines or scratches, usually visible in the field of a coin, sometimes caused by cleaning or polishing.

• Half eagle - A United States five dollar gold coin.

• Hub or hob - A metal object with the intended coin design in relief on one end as it would appear on the finished coin. It is used to produce dies.

• Incuse - The design of a coin which has been impressed below the coin's surface. When the design is raised above the coin's surface, it is said to be in relief.

• "Key date" - Slang usually indicating the rarest (and therefore most expensive)date-and-mint of a particular coin series.

• Legend - The principal inscription on a coin.

• lg. - Abbreviation for the word "large,"generally referring to a date or mintmark.

• Luster - The glossy appearance of the surface of a coin. Although normally brilliant, with time luster may become dull, frosty, spotted or discolored.

• Milled edge - A raised rim around the outer surface of a coin. Not to be confused with the Reeded or serrated narrow edge of the coin.

• Mintmark - A symbol, usually a small letter, used to indicate at which mint a particular coin was struck.

• Modification - A minor alteration in the basic design of a coin.

• Motto - A word or phrase on a coin.

• Mule - A coin struck from obverse and reverse dies not originally intended to be used together.

• NGC or N.G.C. - Numismatic Guaranty Corporation of America, a third-party grading service.

• Nick - A small mark on a coin caused by another coin bumping against it or by contact with a rough or sharp object.

• Numismatics - Area of study relating to coins, medals, or similar items.

• Numismatist - A student or collector of coins, medals, or similar items.

• Obverse - The front or fact side of a coin, usually the side with the date or the principal design. Opposite of the reverse side.

• Overdate - The date made by superimposing one or more different numbers on a previously dated die.

• Oxidation - The formulation of oxides or tarnish on the surface of a coin from exposure to air, dampness, industrial fumes, or other elements.

• Pattern - A prototype of a proposed coin design.

• Patina - A green or brown surface film found on ancient copper and bronze coins caused by oxidation over a long period of time.

• PCGS or P.C.G.S. - Professional Coin Grading Service, a third party grading service founded in 1986 by David Hall. PCGS was the first third party grading service to sonically seal each coin in a plastic container with its grade and registration number. These plastic containers became popularly referred to "slabs."

• Planchet - Disk on which a design is impressed to make a coin, metal or token.

• Proof - Coins struck for collectors and using specially polished or otherwise prepared dies.

• Proof like - Used to describe any uncirculated coin with a mirror like reflective surface but lacking the full characteristics of a proof.

• Quarter eagle - A United States two and one half dollar gold coin.

• Reeded edge - The edge of a coin with grooved lines that run vertically around its perimeter. This type of edge is found on all current United States coins above the five cent denomination.

• Relief - Any part of a coin's design that is raised above the coin's surface. When the design has been impressed below the coin's surface, it is said to be incuse.

• Restrike -A coin struck from genuine dies at a date later than its original issue.

• Reverse - The side of a coin carrying the design of lesser importance. Opposite of the obverse side.

• Rim - The raised portion of a coin encircling the obverse and reverse which protects the designs of the coin from wear.

• Scratch - A deep line or groove in a coin caused by contact with a sharp or rough object.

• Series - One coin of each year issued from each mint of a specific design and denomination, e.g., Standing Liberty Quarters 1916-1930.

• Slab - Slang term for a coin that has been graded, registered and encapsulated (sonically sealed) in a plastic container by a third party grading service.

• sm. - Abbreviation for the word "small," generally referring to a date or mintmark.

• Striations - Thin, light raised lines on the surface of a coin, caused by excessive polishing of the die.

• Striking - Refers to the process by which a coin is minted. Also refers to the sharpness of design details. A sharp strike or strong strike is one with all of the details struck very sharply; a weak strike has the details lightly impressed at the time of coining.

• Toning - Natural patination or discoloration of a coin's surface caused by the atmosphere over a long period of time. Toning is often very attractive, and many collectors prefer coins with this feature.

• Truncation - The sharply cut off bottom edge of a portrait.

• Type - A coin's basic distinguishing design.

• Unique - An item of which only one specimen is known to exist.

• Variety - A minor change from the basic type design of a coin.

• Weak strike - A coin with certain areas of its details (in the areas of high relief) not fully formed because of the hardness of alloy, insufficient striking pressure or improper die spacing.

• Wear - The abrasion of metal from a coin's surface caused by normal handling or circulation.

• Whizzing - The artificial treatment of a coin by wire brushing, acid dipping, or otherwise removing metal from the coin's surface to give it the artificial appearance of being in a higher grade. Whizzing is an alteration, not a grade or condition.

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