Detecting Counterfeits column from Sept. 12, 2016, Weekly issue of Coin World:

1. Additional Info: 1922 was the 2nd year that the 1922 Peace dollar was minted. They really dropped the bomb so to speak on the silver dollar market, minting over 51 million. That is currently $1.6 Billion dollars worth of silver at the spot price. (this note does not update dynamically with the silver spot like the rest of this site).
2. Ron Guth: The 1922 Peace Dollar has the highest mintage of any Silver Dollar, and it remains the most common date in the Peace Dollar series. Compared to the 1921 Peace Dollar, the 1922 has much lower and flatter relief details, but the strike quality is generally good. Luster ranges from a soft, creamy white to a hard, chrome-like surface.
3. The 1921 Peace Dollar design was originally sculpted in high relief. Unfortunately, because of the relief, die life was much lower than acceptable levels. The coins had to be struck with such high pressure that the dies simply shattered under the strain. Because of these die issues, a new lower relief design was implemented in 1922.

Over the past year I have received a number of emails and phone calls from confused numismatists concerning the various fantasy issues produced by Daniel Carr.

Many of these communications have focused on one of Mr. Carr’s more famous creations, the overstrike 1964-D Peace dollar, although a more recent call was about the piece shown here, an overstrike 1922-D Walking Liberty half dollar.

For those of you unfamiliar with Dan Carr’s work, he typically starts with genuine U.S. coins. These coins are subjected to one or more processes that allow them to be overstruck properly.

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The Peace dollar, designed by Anthony de Francisci, depicts a representation of Miss Liberty on the obverse and an American bald eagle perched atop a rock and looking at a sunrise. Most Peace dollars bearing the 1922 date feature the lower relief design, but the U.S. Mint reported striking 35,401 Peace dollars in 1922 with a high relief. It's a shame someone roughed it up like that but it's always cool to land a Dollar with a die crack like the 1H. The arrows look to be pointed to typical features in the die. @messydesk will know for sure.

Using dies that he has produced himself, Mr. Carr then overstrikes the genuine coins, resulting in a fantasy piece that he sells to collectors. These fantasy pieces are almost always coins that do not exist, such as dimes, quarter dollars and half dollars with a 1922 date (none were struck at any U.S. Mint).

I have a lot of respect for Dan Carr’s skills as an artist and a die-sinker — many of his creations are true works of art. For example, he produced a 1909-O Morgan silver dollar fantasy overstrike in Cameo Deep Mirror Prooflike that is absolutely gorgeous — after you inspect one of these, you will wish that all your Morgan silver dollars were this visually appealing.

He is also very careful to let collectors know that these are privately made overstrikes, and that no one should attempt to sell them as genuine coins.

Unfortunately, every now and then one of these overstrikes ends up in the possession of someone who is not familiar with them. The phone call I received concerning the 1922-D Walking Liberty half dollar began with the following message: “I may have a really rare coin — it is not listed in any of the price guides.” It did not take too long for me to identify the piece as a Dan Carr overstrike, although the disappointed caller probably contacted a few more people before accepting what I told him.

If you need to identify an unusual item as a Dan Carr fantasy overstrike issue, you can visit his website, www.moonlightmint.com for images and descriptions.

Most of the pieces he has produced over the years can be viewed here, along with other interesting information about his work.

For example, he submitted the winning designs for the 2001 New York and Rhode Island State quarter dollars, and the 2003 Maine State quarter dollar was based upon his design.

Early Silver Dollars

What This Coin Looks Like (Obverse, Reverse, Mint Mark Location, Special Features, etc.):
Most 1922 Peace Dollars were produced with a Normal Relief design as is the one depicted above in the example image. In the previous year: All 1921 Peace Dollars were High Relief. The US Mint found that this original high relief design produced a higher quality and more beautiful coin but it caused more wear and tear on the dies that produce the coins - which had to be replaced often. So early in 1922: The US Mint decided it was more practical to produce dies that resulted in a coin design with lower relief and lower quality for general circulation.
A small number of 35401 High Relief 1922 Peace dollars were produced but most of them were later melted down - resulting in only a handful of around 10-12 high relief coins (mostly all matte proofs) to survive. More information and analysis about this rare high relief variety can be found below:
Major Variety and Detailed Analysis:
1922 High Relief Peace Dollar

Coin Value Chart: Typical Coin Prices, Values and Worth in USD based on Grade/Condition

Good (G-4)	Very Good (VG-8)	Fine (F-12)	Very Fine (VF-20)	Extremely Fine (EF-40)	About Uncirculated (AU-50)	Uncirculated (MS-60)	Uncirculated (MS-65)	Proof (PR-65)
$28	$31	$36	$42	$42	$44	$52	$171	$80,449

1922 Liberty Dollar Price

USA Coin Book Estimated Value of 1922 Peace Silver Dollar (Normal Relief Variety) is Worth $31 in Average Condition and can be Worth $52 to $171 or more in Uncirculated (MS+) Mint Condition. Proof Coins can be Worth $80,449 or more. Click here to Learn How to use Coin Price Charts. Also, click here to Learn About Grading Coins. The Melt Value shown below is how Valuable the Coin's Metal is Worth (bare minimum value of coin). Click here to see the Melt Value of every US Coin.
MELT VALUE: $21.15

1922 Liberty Dollar

1964 Half Dollar

133 items found

• Seller: allthatisleft
  Condition: Cull
• $29.50
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  Seller: mjkcoins
  Certification Agency: Other
  Certification Number: RAW
  Condition: AU-55
• Seller: Cardinals20102010
  Certification Agency: ICG
  Condition: MS64
• $29.50
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  Seller: mjkcoins
  Certification Agency: Other
  Certification Number: RAW
  Condition: AU-57
• Seller: mjkcoins
  Certification Agency: Other
  Certification Number: RAW
  Condition: BU
• $35.00
• $35.00
• 1922 and 1923 Peace are MS63 and the 1879O Morgan is EF45
  Seller: myersw
• $46.00
  Seller: TaddsCoins
  Certification Agency: Other
  Certification Number: Raw
  Condition: AU-50
• $29.50
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  Seller: mjkcoins
  Certification Agency: Other
  Certification Number: RAW
  Condition: AU-55
• $28.00
  or Best Offer
  Seller: ColoradoCoinage
  Condition: Very good, slot machine scratch on obverse
• $70.00
  Seller: TaddsCoins
  Certification Agency: Other
  Condition: MS-63
• $69.00
  Seller: TaddsCoins
  Certification Agency: Other
  Certification Number: Raw
  Condition: MS-63
• Great Luster and Detail, Good coin for someones collection.
  Seller: TaddsCoins
  Certification Agency: Other
  Certification Number: Raw
  Condition: MS-63
• Seller: tecoins
  Condition: MS62
• Seller: tecoins
  Condition: MS62
• Seller: tecoins
  Condition: MS61
• Seller: HJMSR747
  Certification Agency: PCGS
  Certification Number: 34941868
  Condition: MS-61
• $68.00
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  Seller: CoinsExplorer
  Certification Agency: NGC
  Certification Number: 123158-006
  Condition: MS64
• Seller: AMCoinshop
  Condition: BRILLIANT UNCIRCULATED
• $28.50
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  Seller: mjkcoins
  Certification Agency: Other
  Certification Number: RAW
  Condition: AU-55
• 90% Silver - The coin shown in the photos is the exact coin you'll receive.
  Seller: upnorthcoins
  Condition: AU-50
• $29.50
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  Seller: mjkcoins
  Certification Agency: Other
  Certification Number: RAW
  Condition: AU-55
• $29.50
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  Seller: mjkcoins
  Certification Agency: Other
  Certification Number: RAW
  Condition: AU-55
• Seller: mjkcoins
  Certification Agency: Other
  Certification Number: RAW
  Condition: AU-55