The 1925-S Peace Dollar

At first blush, the 1925-S Peace Dollar appears to many as a common coin. And for all intents and purposes, its mintage of more than 1.6 million (1,610,000, to be exact) doesn’t exactly scream “rarity.”

Those who know the coin have probably seen more circulated examples than they can count, and they often cite one of the big “problems” about this coin: the generally poor quality of its strike. The strike weakness, mainly seen on the reverse high points (especially within the eagle), is an issue that’s perhaps more apparent on uncirculated examples, of which there are many. And it’s for this reason where the coin’s real conditional rarity becomes a factor.

The 1925-S Peace Dollar isn’t categorically rare in Mint State grades. In fact, PCGS estimates that there are around 30,000 examples grading MS60 or better. But it’s extraordinarily rare in grades of MS65 or higher. It’s so rare in MS65 that it’s the only coin in the Peace Dollar series not to boast any encapsulated specimens that grade above MS65, save for the current three graded by PCGS as MS65+.

This isn’t to suggest that 1925-S Peace Dollars are always tough to look at. The typical uncirculated example boasts frosty surfaces, while others are quite brilliant in appearance. But finding one with a full strike is a tall order to fill – about as challenging as locating a 1928-S in similar condition; both reside in the top two spots for being the toughest Peace Dollars to find in MS65.

The difficulty in landing an example of the 1925-S Peace Dollar with a full strike and with surfaces mostly devoid of abrasions and bag marks warrants lofty auction prices. The price difference between an MS64 and an MS65 tells the tale. While an MS64 usually retails for around $900 according to PCGS CoinFacts, an MS65 fetches a solid $40,000.

Obtaining one of the handful of MS65+ examples is an even costlier endeavor. In MS65+, the 1925-S Peace Dollar has a current value of $140,000 – just a little higher than the 2022 auction price of $132,000 achieved for an MS65+ specimen.