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Message:: [QUOTE="World Colonial, post: 2467057, member: 78153"]The survival rate for many of the most widely collected US "key" dates is not that low.  Where the mintage is "low", it is almost certainly above average.  Examples include the 1893-S Morgan and 1909-S VDB.  For more recent coins when US collecting became widespread starting in the 1930's, "low" mintage dates such as 55 quarters and halves and 50-D nickels likely have much higher survival rates than average because they were widely hoarded when issued. The other point which is probably most relevant is not the number of survivors but the survival rate in a quality collectors actually want.  As an example, Bolivian pillar minors were struck from 1767-1770 but apparently circulated until silver coinage was discontinued in 1909.  So though the survival rate might be a low but noticeable percentage (probably still less than 5%), it doesn't really matter because most of them are damaged or so worn that few or no collectors want it.  They aren't even nearly as nice as Fair-2 or AG-3 early US coinage which may sell for thousands.[/QUOTE]