The Value of a Proof-Set Coin

History

• Proof coins were struck at the Philadelphia Mint from 1936 to 1942 before production was suspended during World War II. Proof sets resumed from 1950 to 1964 and 1968 to present. From 1965 to 1967, special Mint sets were struck instead of the standard proof sets. Proof sets from 1936 to 1972 included the penny, nickel, dime, quarter and half dollar. Sets from 1973 to 1981 and from 2000 to the present include the dollar coin. Proof sets are now made in San Francisco and at West Point.

Proofing Process

• Workers inspect dies for perfection, and they are then polished and cleaned. As coins are struck the dies are cleaned and polished after only about a dozen or two dozen uses and are replaced frequently to prevent coin imperfections from dies that are worn. Each blank is struck twice at a slow speed to bring out the details in the die and create a higher relief. Inspectors handle finished proof coins with gloves or tongs to check for imperfections before sealing them in plastic cases.

Grades

• Most coins still sealed in proof sets grade as gem proof (PF-65), meaning they have brilliant surfaces with no distinguishable flaws or blemishes. Coins broken out of the sets may grade lower. If the coin has a few blemishes but no major flaws it may grade as choice proof (PF-63). A proof coin featuring several contact marks, hairline scratches or light rubs would grade as proof (PF-60).

Values

• Most proof sets of recent vintage are worth close to the original Mint issue price, with individual coins still in PF-65 condition valued at about one-fifth to one-sixth the total proof set value. Older proof sets can be quite valuable due to scarcity. Less than 4,000 copies of the 1936 proof set was produced and it can fetch more than $7,000 as of 2010.

Fun Fact

• In place of official mint proof sets, uncirculated coin souvenir sets were sold in the gift shops at the U.S. Mint in Philadelphia and Denver in 1982 and 1983. Each set also included a bronze mint medal. These harder-to-find sets tend to be worth three or four times mint proof sets of the same era.