INDEX
A Mercury Dime contains 0.0723 troy oz of silver — about $4.32 at today's silver price.
Spot price as of July 23, 2026
About This Series
Adolph Weinman designed the "Mercury" dime - though the figure actually depicts Liberty wearing a winged cap, not the Roman god Mercury. It ran from 1916 to 1945. The 1916-D, struck at Denver in very low numbers, is the key date and one of the most widely counterfeited coins in US numismatics. The 1921 and 1921-D are also tough. Collectors grade these on "Full Split Bands" (FSB) on the reverse fasces, and well-struck FSB examples command steep premiums over flatly struck coins. The 1942/41 and 1942/41-D overdates are popular rarities found in circulation-quality coins.
Specifications
1916–1945
- Composition
- 90% Silver, 10% Copper
- Fineness
- 90.0%
- Weight
- 2.50 g
- Diameter
- 17.9 mm
- ASW
- 0.0723 oz
- Years Produced
- 1916–1945
Melt Value
Based on silver spot price of $59.74/oz
Spot price as of July 23, 2026
Mintage by year and mint
“Low mintage” marks a year at or below 10% of the median business-strike mintage for its own denomination; “Scarce for the series” marks one above 10% and at or below 25%. The median here is 20,339,000. That is a statement about how many were struck, not about how many survive or what collectors pay.
Low mintage years in this series: 1916 Denver (264,000), 1921 Denver (1,080,000), 1921 Philadelphia (1,230,000), 1926 San Francisco (1,520,000), 1931 Denver (1,260,000), 1931 San Francisco (1,800,000).
Show all 77 issues, 1916–1945
| Year | Mint | Business strikes | Proof | Relative mintage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1916 | Denver | 264,000 | Not listed by NGC | Low mintage |
| 1916 | Philadelphia | 22,180,080 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1916 | San Francisco | 10,450,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1917 | Denver | 9,402,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1917 | Philadelphia | 55,230,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1917 | San Francisco | 27,330,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1918 | Denver | 22,674,800 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1918 | Philadelphia | 26,680,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1918 | San Francisco | 19,300,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1919 | Denver | 9,939,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1919 | Philadelphia | 35,740,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1919 | San Francisco | 8,850,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1920 | Denver | 19,171,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1920 | Philadelphia | 59,030,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1920 | San Francisco | 13,820,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1921 | Denver | 1,080,000 | Not listed by NGC | Low mintage |
| 1921 | Philadelphia | 1,230,000 | Not listed by NGC | Low mintage |
| 1923 | Philadelphia | 50,130,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1923 | San Francisco | 6,440,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1924 | Denver | 6,810,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1924 | Philadelphia | 24,010,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1924 | San Francisco | 7,120,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1925 | Denver | 5,117,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1925 | Philadelphia | 25,610,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1925 | San Francisco | 5,850,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1926 | Denver | 6,828,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1926 | Philadelphia | 32,160,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1926 | San Francisco | 1,520,000 | Not listed by NGC | Low mintage |
| 1927 | Denver | 4,812,000 | Not listed by NGC | Scarce for the series |
| 1927 | Philadelphia | 28,080,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1927 | San Francisco | 4,770,000 | Not listed by NGC | Scarce for the series |
| 1928 | Denver | 4,161,000 | Not listed by NGC | Scarce for the series |
| 1928 | Philadelphia | 19,480,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1928 | San Francisco | 7,400,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1929 | Denver | 5,034,000 | Not listed by NGC | Scarce for the series |
| 1929 | Philadelphia | 25,970,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1929 | San Francisco | 4,730,000 | Not listed by NGC | Scarce for the series |
| 1930 | Philadelphia | 6,770,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1930 | San Francisco | Not published by NGC | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1931 | Denver | 1,260,000 | Not listed by NGC | Low mintage |
| 1931 | Philadelphia | 3,150,000 | Not listed by NGC | Scarce for the series |
| 1931 | San Francisco | 1,800,000 | Not listed by NGC | Low mintage |
| 1934 | Denver | 6,772,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1934 | Philadelphia | 24,080,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1935 | Denver | 10,477,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1935 | Philadelphia | 58,830,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1935 | San Francisco | 15,840,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1936 | Denver | 16,132,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1936 | Philadelphia | 87,500,000 | 4,130 | |
| 1936 | San Francisco | 9,210,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1937 | Denver | 14,146,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1937 | Philadelphia | 56,860,000 | 5,756 | |
| 1937 | San Francisco | 9,740,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1938 | Denver | 5,537,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1938 | Philadelphia | 22,190,000 | 8,728 | |
| 1938 | San Francisco | 8,090,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1939 | Denver | 24,394,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1939 | Philadelphia | 67,740,000 | 9,321 | |
| 1939 | San Francisco | 10,540,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1940 | Denver | 21,198,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1940 | Philadelphia | 65,350,000 | 11,827 | |
| 1940 | San Francisco | 21,560,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1941 | Denver | 45,634,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1941 | Philadelphia | 175,090,000 | 16,557 | |
| 1941 | San Francisco | 43,090,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1942 | Denver | 60,740,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1942 | Philadelphia | 205,410,000 | 22,329 | |
| 1942 | San Francisco | 49,300,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1943 | Denver | 71,949,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1943 | Philadelphia | 191,710,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1943 | San Francisco | 60,400,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1944 | Denver | 62,224,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1944 | Philadelphia | 231,410,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1944 | San Francisco | 49,490,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1945 | Denver | 40,245,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1945 | Philadelphia | 159,130,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| 1945 | San Francisco | 41,920,000 | Not listed by NGC | |
| Mintages as published by NGC Coin Explorer, 2026-03 snapshot. Covers 1916–1945. NGC Coin Explorer does not list every date and mint, so this is what it publishes rather than a complete census. | ||||