Liberty Seated Coinage - Open Registry Sets

Liberty Seated Dimes - Individual Dates and Mintmarks

Obverse & Reverse Die Pictorial Guide

with Denticle Ruler Attribution Tables

The Obverse & Reverse Die Pictorial guide represents a complete Liberty Seated Dime Varieties reference set as known to me. Since 1987, the following set has seen continual upgrading to expand within date obverse and reverse die definitions, die marriages and die states. The set is presented by individual dates and mintmarks. Simply click on the desire date/mintmark link to view an individual die variety pictorial of that date/mintmark.

Denticle Ruler attribution tables are available as part of the pictorial guide. For each date and mintmark pictorial, the Denticle Ruler (DR) table is added as a header to the file. The DR table is an easy to use sighting method for determining the difference between obverse dies and facilitates within date obverse die variety attribution.

Denticle Ruler (DR)

The Denticle Ruler uses Liberty's shield as a reference point. A vertical line is sighted from the lower point of the shield to a denticle directly below the lower shield point. This denticle acts as the point of reference for date position measurements and is assigned a numbered 0 position. The denticle to the immediate right of the #0 denticle is numbered 1. The next denticle to the right of the #1 denticle is numbered 2 and so on. The denticle to the immediate left of the #0 denticle is numbered -1. The next denticle to the left of the #-1 denticle is numbered -2 and so on. These numbered denticles act as a measurement ruler for determining date placement. In order to increase measurement resolution, each denticle is subdivided into three equal parts labeled left (L), center (C) and right (R). An example of a typical subset of denticle ruler measurement points for a numbered 0 denticle, from left to right, would be 0L, 0C, 0R. The final step to complete the denticle ruler is defining points between any two denticles. The point directly between two numbered denticles is designated as a point between (B) a left and right numbered denticle. The point between numbered 0 and 1denticles is designated 0B1. A denticle ruler measurement subset from the numbered -1 denticle through numbered 1 denticle would be named as:

-1L, -1C, -1R, -1B0, 0L, 0C, 0R, 0B1, 1L, 1C, 1R

The following images present visual examples of the denticle ruler measurement system for No Drapery and Drapery obverse hub designs.

To determine the denticle ruler position of a date, the placement of the outer end of the left foot of the 1 in the date is compared to the denticle directly below it. A measurement of the date position is then taken from the denticle ruler numbering system illustrated above. Examples of denticle ruler measurements are presented for No Drapery and Drapery obverses in the following images.