Dahlonega Gold Glossary

Dahlonega Gold Glossary

Vocabulary of numismatic terms used on this web site

AU	About uncirculated. Grade level between extremely fine and uncirculated. Typically, either has full mint sharpness without mint bloom, or has nearly full mint luster with traces of rubbing or enough bag marks to interfere with design details.
Blank	An unstruck planchet.
Branch Mint	Any federal coining facility except the Philadelphia Mint. See mintmark.
Business strike	A coin given only one blow from the dies, intended for normal circulation or commercial use; same as production coin.
Clashmarks	Impressions of part of a device or legend of one die onto field of the die facing it in the press. From the dies striking each other at normal coining force without a planchet between them.
Circulated	Released to the general public. Showing signs of wear from being passed from hand to hand.
Die	That which stamps a design into a planchet.
Die state	Discrete stage in the life history of a die, from new to worn, clashed, cracked, chipped, broken, and/or rusted.
Die Variety	Each die exhibits minute differences. A die variety is the coin variety created by a specific obverse and reverse die. When the obverse and/or reverse dies are changed a new variety is created. Some coin enthusiasts collect coins by die varieties, attempting to acquie an example of every die used to mint their favorite date and/or type of coin.
Grade	Rating of a coin's place on a scale whose lower extreme is illegible wear, and whose upper extreme is perfect preservation.
Half Eagle	Official name for Federal gold $5 coin.
Mintmark	The letter identifying the mint of origin of a coin.
Mint	1. Any coining establishment. 2. To strike coins.
Mint Bloom	Pristine surface of a freshly minted coin.
Mint State (MS)	Uncirculated. Coins showing no trace of wear. Coins graded MS 60-70.
Mintage	The number of coins originally struck at a particular mint with a particular date on the coin.
Obverse	Front, or "heads", side of coin.
Pedigree	Sequence of owners of a coin.
Planchet	Disk on which a design is stamped to make a coin.
Pristine	Said of a Mint State coin with original surfaces intact, never cleaned.
Prooflike	Said of a presentation piece or an exceptional production coin, struck from brilliantly polished dies on a blank which may or may not also have been polished before striking.
Quarter Eagle	Legal name for the $2.50 gold coin.
Rare	Said of a coin of which only a limited number exist in collectors' hands.
Reverse	Back, or "tails", side of coin.
Scarce	In short supply, but with more survivors accessible than of a coin properly labled as rare.
Strike	To stamp a coin design onto a blank.
Uncirculated	Mint State, contrasted with circulated, free of any trace of wear. Unworn business strike.
Variety	Any coin recognizably different in dies from another of the same design, type, date, and mint.

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