1912-S

238,000 coins. San Francisco delivered the lowest Liberty Head nickel mintage in the entire series in 1912, and the coin was, per Ron Guth, "almost twice as rare as the 1909-S V.D.B. Cent" in Mint State. The 1912-S is the only Liberty Head nickel ever produced at San Francisco, and its tiny mintage came at the end of the series as an almost incidental production: San Francisco had never struck nickels before, received only a small quantity of dies, and produced the coins in a brief run before the series ended and was replaced by the Buffalo design in 1913.

PCGS estimates approximately 5,000 survivors across all grades, with around 1,500 in MS60 or better and 250 at MS65 or better. The 1912-S is, per Guth, "the only date of this design struck at the San Francisco Mint." Despite the low mintage, the date is surprisingly available in lower Mint State grades. It becomes genuinely rare at MS66 and above, where the population drops sharply. Strike weakness is a recurring issue: the corn ear at the lower-left reverse tends to be soft, and the overall strike appearance is softer than Philadelphia issues from the same year.

The auction record is $37,375 for an MS66 sold by Heritage in January 2012. The Burdick-Kaselitz finest-known MS66+, sold by Stack's Bowers in July 2015 for $32,900, came from the Richard Burdick collection through Douglas C. Kaselitz. Both prices reflect the strong specialist demand for top-population examples of a date that combines low mintage, only-S-mint status, and the historical significance of being the first San Francisco Liberty Head nickel.

Identification requires verifying the S mintmark positioned to the left of CENTS on the reverse below the wreath. The mintmark is the critical diagnostic. Without it, the coin is a common Philadelphia 1912 worth a small fraction of the S-mint price. Counterfeits and altered-mintmark pieces (typically common Philadelphia coins with an added S) are documented in the hobby, and any 1912-S purchased at key-date prices should carry certification from PCGS or NGC. The mintmark itself is small but distinct on genuine coins; altered mintmarks often show tooling marks or inconsistent shapes under magnification.

The 1912-S is the required final piece in a complete Liberty Head nickel set. Many collectors acquire it last, using the 1885 and 1886 to establish the set first and saving the 1912-S for a significant purchase when budget and opportunity align. The coin's historical significance as the only San Francisco Liberty Head nickel, combined with its genuine scarcity in upper grades, makes it one of the most collected twentieth-century United States nickels.