silver dollar

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A dollar coin that was originally made of silver in Europe, and was first issued by the royalty of England and Scotland in the 16th century. The United States of America first minted silver dollars in 1794, and those coins announced the establishment of the dollar as the country's official denomination. Although the early, high-value silver coins were not commonly circulated, they did pave the way to the production of inexpensive circulating dollar coins. Today the silver dollar is a collector's item that is made of white metal rather than real silver and that features different designs according to notable events in U.S. history.

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"The reverse of the Morgan silver dollar, minted in 1879. August 10, 2012" by Brandon Grossardt, Actual Coin is licensed under Public Domain.

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