The Liberty Head Nickel, designed by Charles E. Barber, was first minted in 1883.  The style consisted of the head of Liberty on the obverse surrounded by 13 stars with the date 1883 below.  A Roman numeral V within the wreath was on the coin.  The only indication of the value was the V.  Unscrupulous people gold plated these nickels and passed them as $5 gold pieces.  This problem was quickly remedied half way through 1883 by adding the word CENT to the reverse of the coin.

 

All coins were struck at the Philadelphia Mint and at the Denver and San Francisco Mints in 1913.  Although the series officially ended in1912, there are five 1913 coins known, each valued at over $300,000. 

 

The President of Lee Certified Coins, Mr. Edward C. Lee, purchased one of these coins for $3 million and later sold it for $4.15 million.  Click here to read more about the 1913 Liberty Head Nickels!