United States: 1851-O silver 3-cent piece, Type 1

Discussion in 'US Coins Forum' started by lordmarcovan, Jan 29, 2026 at 6:37 AM.

  1. lordmarcovan

    lordmarcovan Eclectic numismatist Moderator

    United States: 1851-O silver 3-cent piece, Type 1

    NGC AU58. Cert. #6607223-018.

    Numista-1129, Krause-Mishler-75.

    Ex-Heritage Auction #132313, Lot 29069, 28 March 2023. Purchased in the slab.

    The 1851-1873 silver three-cent piece, also referred to as a "trime", was the smallest regular issue United States silver coin struck by the mint. This one is a Type 1, the first subtype of the design, which was issued between 1851 and 1853. The Type 1 is distinguishable by the lack of extra lines outlining the six-pointed star on the obverse, which were later seen on the Type 2 and Type 3 coins.

    This particular example is an 1851-O, struck at the New Orleans mint. The 1851-O is the only silver three-cent piece to have been struck at a branch mint, and it bears the "O" mintmark for New Orleans to the right of the "C" on the reverse. This date had a relatively lower mintage of just 720,000 pieces, compared to mintages in the millions or tens of millions for the other Type 1 dates. That and the mystique of the mintmark make the 1851-O popular.

    I had always wanted one prior to purchasing this coin. Perhaps I was a bit unrestrained in my enthusiasm and ended up overpaying a little bit for it, but not by too much. I'm still happy to have it.

    01-frame.png 02-black.png 05-obv.png 06-rev.png 07-slab.png

    079970
     
    Last edited: Jan 29, 2026 at 2:05 PM
    lordmarcovan, Jan 29, 2026 at 6:37 AM
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  3. BRandM

    BRandM Counterstamp Collector

    These little 3-cent pieces are underappreciated by collectors. It's a pretty coin and unusual for it's size. The devices are simple and clean. You have a nice example.

    Bruce
     
    BRandM, Jan 29, 2026 at 9:18 AM
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  4. Burton Strauss III

    Burton Strauss III Brother can you spare a trime? Supporter

    Be careful with words -- the "Panama Pill" was struck by the United States (Mint) for the Government of Panama, and at 10mm it's smaller than the 14mm Trime.

    I'm going to say that's a solid grade. Tiniest touches on the shield lines at 2 and 7, and the diamond on the reverse. The poorly defined orbs and bars in the C of the reverse are just typical strike weakness.
     
    Burton Strauss III, Jan 29, 2026 at 10:08 AM
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  5. Gallienus

    Gallienus coinsandhistory.com

    Oh
     
    Gallienus, Jan 29, 2026 at 12:06 PM
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  6. Gallienus

    Gallienus coinsandhistory.com

     
    Gallienus, Jan 29, 2026 at 12:06 PM
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  7. Mr.Q

    Mr.Q Well-Known Member

    The coin is nice but thin and susceptible to damage easily. I finally got smart and purchased one slabbed in low MS quality. Nice coin thanks for sharing.
     
    Mr.Q, Jan 29, 2026 at 1:11 PM
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  8. -jeffB

    -jeffB Greshams LEO Supporter

    Only in diameter. The 2.5 centisimos is much thicker, and weighs more (1.25g vs. 0.75 or 0.8g). (Edited to fix typo)
     
    Last edited: Jan 29, 2026 at 2:37 PM
    -jeffB, Jan 29, 2026 at 1:18 PM
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  9. Burton Strauss III

    Burton Strauss III Brother can you spare a trime? Supporter

    Um, type 2s and 3s are 0.8g of 0.900 fine.
     
    Burton Strauss III, Jan 29, 2026 at 1:39 PM
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  10. lordmarcovan

    lordmarcovan Eclectic numismatist Moderator

    Thanks. I tweaked my description slightly.
     
    lordmarcovan, Jan 29, 2026 at 2:06 PM
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  11. -jeffB

    -jeffB Greshams LEO Supporter

    Yep, I fat-fingered it, fixed now. So the trimes are even more emphatically the smallest US-gov-minted coins. ;)
     
    -jeffB, Jan 29, 2026 at 2:39 PM
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  12. Clawcoins

    Clawcoins Damaging Coins Daily

    Nice 3 cent. Mine is a bit more tattered and common but still mine :)
    upload_2026-1-29_17-23-58.png upload_2026-1-29_17-25-21.png
     
    Clawcoins, Jan 29, 2026 at 5:25 PM
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  13. Neal

    Neal Well-Known Member

    Very nice! Here's my worn little trime, a variety 2 from a worn-out die:
    IMG_7873.JPG IMG_7868.JPG
     
    Neal, Jan 29, 2026 at 9:18 PM
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  14. ksparrow

    ksparrow Coin Hoarder Supporter

    Such a cool little coin. I think I have 3 of them, 2 circulated raw, and this one in MS:
    3c. silver 1851-O pcgs obv label.jpg 3c. silver 1851-O pcgs obv.jpg 3c. silver 1851-O pcgs rev.jpg
     
    ksparrow, Jan 31, 2026 at 2:12 PM
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  15. mark_h

    mark_h Somewhere over the rainbow

    Now that AU58 coin is a beauty. Just love it.
     
    mark_h, Jan 31, 2026 at 4:15 PM
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  16. lordmarcovan

    lordmarcovan Eclectic numismatist Moderator

    Thank you! @ksparrow just totally outclassed it, though. And good, I say. It was cool to see a lustrous MS example.
     
    lordmarcovan, Feb 1, 2026 at 6:09 AM
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  17. mark_h

    mark_h Somewhere over the rainbow

    AU-58.jpg
    Oh he definitely got a like on his coin. But yours is a the type AU coins I like to search for. It also makes some of them affordable. I would gladly add one like yours into my type set. I have a few AU-58 coins and am sure a couple of them I over paid for - like the 1897-O. Sometimes I want whats I want. :)
     
    mark_h, Feb 1, 2026 at 7:28 PM
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  18. lordmarcovan

    lordmarcovan Eclectic numismatist Moderator

    AU58 is certainly a "value" grade. I know of folks with AU58 type sets. I always thought MS62 was another good "bang for the buck" grade.
     
    lordmarcovan, Feb 1, 2026 at 7:44 PM
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  19. Burton Strauss III

    Burton Strauss III Brother can you spare a trime? Supporter

    Sounds like I need to take pictures and post my XF set.
     
    Burton Strauss III, Feb 1, 2026 at 7:57 PM
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  20. lordmarcovan

    lordmarcovan Eclectic numismatist Moderator

    You could definitely post at least the 1851-O here...
     
    lordmarcovan, Feb 1, 2026 at 8:11 PM
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