Buffalo nickel (1913–1938)
The buffalo nickel was produced from 1913 to 1938 and were produced using the Philadelphia, Denver, and San Francisco mints. Mint marks for the coins are on the reverse, beneath the words "Five Cents"
The buffalo nickel, designed by James Earle Fraser, featured a profile of a Native American on the obverse and an American Bison (buffalo) on the reverse. Its been said that the Indian profile was a composite of three chiefs: John Big Tree, Iron Tail and Two Moons. The model for the buffalo was "Black Diamond," from New York City's Central Park Zoo. Fraser's design is generally considered to be among the best designs of any U.S. coin. There was a type change in mid-1913 when the mound on the reverse was changed mid-year to an incuse flat plane because of wear problems. Thus, with the three mints, there are six types of 1913 nickels. There was no change to the date placement, so the dates on many early buffalo nickels have been completely worn off. As the series progressed, the date was gradually struck with larger and bolder numerals. No buffalo nickels were made in 1922, 1932, or 1933. The lack of 1922 nickels, as well as some other denominations, resulted from the Mint's placing a priority on silver dollar production in that year, and no nickels — and many other denominations — were issued in 1932 or 1933 due to the Great Depression. |
