1920 Mercury Dime

US coins are often on the list of collectors, but few are found there more frequently than Mercury Dimes. This expansive collection of ten-cent pieces was first introduced by the US Mint during the early 20^th century, but stuck around for many years to come. Nowadays, these coins are popular amongst collectors, especially those who would like to put a whole set of them together.

Unfortunately for many, these coins were so popular when they were produced that not many of them have survived the years in such great shape. Having been circulated heavily, these coins often come tattered and damaged. This is why you will see collectors paying large amounts of money for Mercury Dimes in excellent condition.

Grading the 1920 Mercury Dime

For coins that are as old as the 1920 Mercury Dime, the condition of the coin in question is of the utmost importance to collectors. Even the smallest bit of damage can take away a coin’s appeal, so you will see people closely examining every aspect of the coin looking for imperfections.

Normally, coins like the 1920 Mercury Dime are sent away to a professional company for grading, but we understand that not everyone has the time and money to send a coin away for grading, so we have provided our own basic grading specifications below.

Uncirculated: This is the grade given to those Mercury Dimes that are in absolutely top-notch condition. These coins were never circulated and thus never suffered the type of damage and wear that is common on Dimes this old. Every feature and detail will be wholly intact, and that is why people will pay a lot of money for these coins.

Extremely Fine: This grade is given to Mercury Dimes that have been only lightly circulated. Having suffered some light damage, the appeal of these coins is slightly diminished, but every little feature that is located in this coin’s design is able to be made out with the naked eye with not trouble at all.

Fine: A coin that is graded to be Fine is one that saw a good amount of time in circulation and ended up suffering a good bit of damage. The biggest imperfections can be found in the smoothing of the coin’s design, which results in lesser detail of the imagery. This is why these coins are a bit less expensive.

Good: This is the grade given to coins that are in pretty rough shape thanks to their spending years in circulation. These coins will have suffered a good bit of damage during their time in circulation and will have imagery that is quite difficult to make out. This is the type of Mercury Dime you will come across most often.

Pricing the 1920 Mercury Dime

Giving the 1920 Mercury Dime is as easy as taking both the type and the condition of the coin into consideration. Because there were multipe different types of Mercury Dime minted every year, the exact type and its associated scarcity will first and foremost factor into the price of the coin. Secondly, the condition the coin is in will play into the price you pay. Like we have made very clear, collectors are willing to pay top-dollar for those coins that have been well-preserved. Refer to the chart below for a more accurate price determination for the 1920 Mercury Dime, graded.

Mercury Dimes

DATE	GOOD	FINE	EXTREMELY FINE	UNCIRCULATED
1920 Mercury Dime	$3	$3.50	$8	$15
1920 Mercury Dime (D)	$3	$4.50	$20	$45
1920 Mercury Dime (S)	$3.25	$5	$18	$45
Source: Red Book