1875-CC Mintmark Above Bow

The 1875-CC Mintmark Above Bow dime is the recognized mintmark-position variety from the year Carson City resumed dime production after the brief gap that followed the 1874 closing of the Arrows era. The mint delivered a combined 4,645,000 pieces during the calendar year, split across two distinct reverse die configurations: one with the CC mintmark positioned above the bow knot at the base of the wreath, and one with the mintmark below the knot. Both configurations are cataloged separately and attributed by PCGS, the Professional Coin Grading Service, and NGC, the Numismatic Guaranty Company. The Above Bow placement is the less commonly encountered of the two on the 1875-CC, and it has carried a recognized premium since the variety was published in the standard references. Weight stays at the 2.50-gram post-1873 Coinage Act standard on a 90 percent silver planchet.

Identifying the Above Bow placement requires examining the wreath above and below the ribbon knot under 5x magnification, since the mintmark on the variety sits clearly above the knot rather than below it. The 1875-CC is the only Seated Dime year where both mintmark positions exist for the same date and mint, which makes attribution straightforward once a collector knows what to look for. Strike runs typical of mid-1870s Carson City silver work, with the wreath leaves and the ribbon bow generally well-impressed and the obverse legend coming up cleanly on most early die states. Survival concentrates in the wide circulated range, with Very Good through Extremely Fine examples surfacing regularly and Mint State coins available in usable numbers through MS-63 before turning condition-scarce above MS-64. Authentication checks include the 2.50-gram weight, the 17.9-millimeter reeded edge, and the proper CC mintmark placement above the wreath bow knot; added-CC alterations from 1875 Philadelphia host coins miss both the placement geometry and the proper punch depth.

For a date-and-mint Seated Dime set, the Above Bow placement reads as the more desirable of the two 1875-CC variants and a useful specialty target for collectors who attribute their coins beyond the date and mintmark level. Pricing on the Above Bow runs at a modest premium over the Below Bow placement in worn grades, with the differential expanding through Mint State as condition rarity compounds on the scarcer variety. The Regular classification matches market behavior across the worn grades, where the issue trades as a specialty pickup rather than a Key Date. For the broader story of Gobrecht's design, the 1873 Coinage Act, and the Carson City Mint, see the Seated Liberty Dime series history.