Coinage Dies Confiscated ! -- Joseph J. Mickley (originally posted May 17, 2010) 0

[RWB]

On August 15, 2020 PCGS board member Jimnight commented about the above thread title:

“It's amazing that the dies ever got out of the mint.”

 The poster deserves an answer, so here it is ---  [Members here should refer to the original decade-old thread ATS.]

https://forums.collectors.com/discussion/775259/coinage-dies-confiscated-joseph-j-mickley

and

https://www.ngccoin.com/boards/topic/420389-buying-old-dies-as-scrap-metal/

Used or defective dies were sold as high quality scrap steel for many years by the Philadelphia Mint. Contractors would bid on the metal because good quality steel was difficult to produce and brought a significant premium when reworked in machine parts. Most production was in cast iron which did not meet the needs of railroad and other engine builders.

We don’t know where Mickley bought the dies and hubs, but none were usable for coinage. He might have had contacts with local iron mongers or they might have been from people looking out for unusual items to sell to collectors.

Other dies have turned up as paper weights, door stops, and one was found on a Philadelphia street in 1889.

Edited August 17, 2020 by RWB

[kbbpll]

Funny how 435 Arch St is right next to the current mint building.

[GoldFinger1969]

Those meticulous and infallible Mint procedures and records strike again !