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Message:: [QUOTE="World Colonial, post: 2464991, member: 78153"]I believe the 16-D dime's price is almost exclusively the result of its prior perception when collecting was predominantly out of pocket change.  The same would apply to other "key" dates which for the Mercury dime also includes the '21, '21-d and 42/1.  It was a communication limitation that has been made obsolete by the internet, As to the collector base, I'd guesstimate that if the US active collector population is in the vicinity of two million maybe 50,000 or somewhat more attempt to collect the full series.  However, the lopsided majority don't buy coins in the 16-d price range and this includes a graded AG-3 which costs about $400 now. I expect this series to remain popular because the design has wide appeal and (US) collectors tend to favor their own coinage.  However, I expect those who do not collect the series but bought one or a few coins in isolation in the past to do so much less or just buy one high quality type coin.  The supply of high quality coins for this series is very large, likely much larger than indicated by the population reports, even considering duplicates.  In the internet age, there are a vast number of alternatives which can be bought for the same money or much less than these "key" dates.[/QUOTE]