1873 10C Closed 3 MS64 认证号02850124, PCGS号4659

Mintage: 1,508,000 (Closed 3) and 60,000 (Open 3)
Obverse Dies: 8 Known (Closed 3) and 3 Known (Open 3)

1873 Philadelphia dimes without arrows are found with an Open 3 and Closed 3 digit. For years the Open 3 variety has been afforded a premium over the Closed 3 variety due to the low reported Open 3 mintage. In circulated grades, I would question if the premium is warranted and secondly, question if the reported Open 3 mintage of 60,000 was properly recorded or estimated. In Mint State, Open 3 dimes are much rarer than their Closed 3 counterparts.

Plate Coin: Closed 3, Fortin 105, Very Sharp Strike

Ron Guth

The earliest Dimes of 1873 were of the same type as in previous years, without the arrowheads that appeared on either side of the date later in the year.  There was a problem, though, with the first Dimes of the year.  The 3 of the date looked too much like an 8 because the ends of the loops were too close together.  This was corrected early in the year, resulting in the Close 3 and the Open 3 varieties. 

The mintage of the Close 3 variety is over 1.5 million pieces compared to a mere 60,000 for the Open 3 variety.  Though the population of PCGS-certified examples of both varieties is nearly equal, the quality of the Close 3s is higher overall.  At the top end, the best example is a single NGC MS67 from the Gene Gardner Collection (recently sold for $6,462.50).  MS63 is the most frequently seen grade.