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In the early days dies were cut by hand. By means of an engraving tool the die cutter would create the figure of Miss Liberty, an eagle, or other motif. Letters and numerals would be added to the die individually by means of punches. Certain other punches were used for elements as leaves and berries. Each die was slightly different from all others. The collecting of coins made by different dies is a fascinating pursuit. Sometimes a die would last long enough to make tens of thousands of coins before it broke, and thus coins from such a die are easy to find today. In other instances a die would break shortly after it was first used, only a few pieces would be struck from it, and today that particular die variety is rare.

Beginning about the year 1836 the preparation of dies was mechanized, and the lettering, eagle, figure of Miss Liberty, and everything else but the date was stamped on the die from a master die or hub. The date figures were then added individually. Soon thereafter, logotypes consisting of an entire date, such as 1898, were made, and the date was then punched in all at once, rather than individual date punches. Still later, the date was included in the master die, and all working dies were stamped with all information on them -including the date, design, and lettering. That is the way dies are produced today. Consequently, there are relatively few die variety differences among modern coins.

When the framers of the U.S. Constitution created a new government for their untried Republic, they realized the critical need for a respected monetary system. Soon after the Constitution's ratification, Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton personally prepared plans for a national Mint. On April 2, 1792, Congress passed The Coinage Act, which created the Mint and authorized construction of a Mint building in the nation's capitol, Philadelphia. This was the first federal building erected under the Constitution.

David Rittenhouse
First Director of the
United States Mint

President George Washington appointed Philadelphian David Rittenhouse, a leading American scientist, as the first Director of the Mint. Under Rittenhouse, the Mint produced its first circulating coins -- 11,178 copper cents, which were delivered in March 1793. Soon after, the Mint began issuing gold and silver coins as well. President Washington, who lived only a few blocks from the new Mint, is believed to have donated some of his own silver for minting.