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Coin Collecting Glossary

The who's who and what's what of coin collecting.

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Die

This is a steel punch with one side of a coin's design on it in mirror image and used to strike the coin's image into a blank planchet. A pair of dies with both the obverse and reverse images are used together to strike coins.
See also - - Obverse, Reverse

Die Crack

Definition coming soon.

Double Eagle

A United States $20 gold coin minted from 1849 until 1933. Double eagles were created as a response to the California Gold Rush. Double eagles are grouped into two major types, the Liberty Head (1849-1907) and the St. Gaudens (1907-1933). Each of the two major types are further divided into subtypes. Gold type collectors usually seek an example of each of the subtypes. The 1849 double eagle is a unique pattern piece that currently resides in the Smithsonian Institution. The 1933 double eagles were supposed to have all been melted before being released. There are at least eleven known of which all but one is currently illegal to own.
See also - - Liberty Head Double Eagle, St. Gaudens Double Eagle

Double Strike

This is the result of a coin being struck multiple times by the dies. Since double strikes occur when a coin fails to eject after being struck the first time, the coin is struck a second or more times. This may or may not result in some doubling of the elements on both sides of a coin. This is different from doubled die coins that generally are affected on only one side of a coin.
See also - - Doubled Die

Doubled Die

This is the result of a coin being struck by a die that was given two misaligned impressions from a hub resulting in the doubling of some of the design elements. The doubling occurs on only one side of the coin unless both dies being used are doubled dies. This is not the same as a double strike.
See also - - Double Strike, Hub

Dump
English slang for coins that were small and thick. A term also used for the inner disk cut out of a New South Wales, Australia holey dollar that would then be circulated as a fifteen pence coin.
The holey dollar and dump are the only Australian coins to have been demonetized by having their legal tender status revoked.
See also - - Holey Dollar