Coins from the Revolutionary War are rare artifacts from the early days of America. They depict the birth of a new country and its first attempts to create a currency.
Many of these coins have become very valuable since they were made in tough environments. These five coins from the American Revolution are very valuable:
1. The Continental Dollar from 1776, which was the first dollar in the United States
One of the most famous coins from the time of the Revolutionary War is the Continental Dollar from 1776. When these coins were made in 1776, they were meant to be the country’s money.
However, there are different opinions on whether they were actually used as money or just as a joke.
On the obverse of these coins, which are mostly pewter but do come in rare silver and brass, it reads “Continental Currency” and has the year “1776” and a chain-link pattern that symbolizes unity among the 13 colonies.
Some very rare types can sell for hundreds of thousands of dollars at auction. In 2014, a pewter example sold for $1.4 million.
2. The first money issued by the state, the Massachusetts half cent and cent from 1776.
Massachusetts made her own coins as it wanted to be free during the Revolutionary War
Some of the first coins minted in what would become the United States were these half-cent and cent pieces minted in 1776. The words “Massachusetts” are written above a picture of a Native American carrying a bow and arrow.
Collectors really want these coins, and good ones can sell for tens of thousands of dollars, based on how rare they are and how well they are kept.
3. 1783 Nova Constellatio Patterns – The First Coinage Experiment of America
The very first attempt in the United States to make an official money system post the Revolutionary War was the Nova Constellatio patterns.
Coins designed by Robert Morris had unique decimal systems and had different values ranging from 1,000, 500 and 100 unit coins.
Although the Nova Constellatio designs were never used, they lay down the groundwork for the U.S. dollar system. Today, very few are available, and when they are, they command a high price.
In 2013, a rare 1783 Nova Constellatio coin came to sale and was sold for nearly $1.2 million. It is one of the highly prized pieces of American history sought after by buffs of history.
4. The gold coin in America was the very first one coined in 1787: it’s called the Brasher Doubloon.
The Brasher Doubloon commemorated the fact that the newfound nation was being free even when it was manufactured a little more than after the Revolutionary War time.
This is a gold coin made by Ephraim Brasher, a goldsmith in New York City. It was one of the first gold coins made in America by a private mint. Brasher’s coins have his letters “EB” stamped on them.
One side has an eagle and the other has the sun rising over a mountain. There are believed to be only a few of these gold doubloons remaining, and each is worth a million dollars.
It was one of the most expensive coins in the world when it sold for $9.36 million in 2021.
5. The Vermont Copper Coins (1785–1788) were the first coins of a free state.
Between 1785 and 1788, Vermont issued its own copper coins. Vermont was an independent nation at that time and later became part of the United States.
The Vermont coppers have special designs, such as a sun rising over mountains and the Latin phrase “Stella Quarta Decima,” which means “the fourteenth star” and refers to Vermont’s goal of becoming the 14th state.
These coins were used a lot, and they aren’t seen very often these days, especially in good shape. Vermont coppers can fetch tens of thousands or even thousands of dollars at auction, depending on how good they are and what kind they are.
Finally, some thoughts
There’s more to each of these coins than meets the eye. They are real pieces of the United States’ path to freedom and sovereignty.
These are America’s first gold coin, known as the Brasher Doubloon, and a Continental Dollar, a symbol of earlier unity.
The coins represent a momentous part in the Revolutionary War. They remain precious historical artifacts as their monetary value is immense. They act as a unique link to that spirit of the revolution for collectors and scholars alike, the beginning of the country.