Designed by: Robert Scot
Issue Dates: 1795-1798
Composition: 89.24% silver, 10.76% copper
Diameter: 39 to 40 mm
Weight: 26.96 grams (416.05 grains)
Edge: Lettered HUNDRED CENTS ONE DOLLAR OR UNIT
Business Strike Mintage: 123,434 (The Mint did not record the mintages of the 1798 Small Eagle and 1798 Heraldic Eagle separately, so we have excluded the 1798 mintage of 327,536)
Proof Mintage: None
The 1795 Draped Bust dollar represents the initial appearance of this design in American coinage. In the silver dollar series, the obverse motif was continued through pieces dated 1804 (business strikes last made in 1803, however), while the reverse motif was employed through early 1798. The obverse features a portrait of Miss Liberty as just described, with LIBERTY above, the date below, and eight stars to the left and seven to the right. The reverse shows a "small" eagle perched on a cloud within an open wreath. UNITED STATES OF AMERICA surrounds.
Among early silver dollars, the Draped Bust obverse combined with the Small Eagle reverse may be the scarcest type. Specimens exist in all grades, with those most frequently encountered apt to be in Very Good to Fine preservation. Very Fine pieces can be readily located, Extremely Fine coins are scarcer, and those in AU or better preservation are decidedly rare. A strictly Uncirculated coin would be considered a prime rarity. Examples often show parallel mint caused adjustment marks. As these coins were produced strictly for utilitarian purposes, no attention was paid to striking them carefully.
