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$ 1 ⁄ 8 or 1 silver real was 1 "bit". [1] [2] With the adoption of the decimal U.S. currency in 1794, there was no longer a U.S. coin worth $ 1 ⁄ 8, but "two bits" remained in the language with the meaning of $ 1 ⁄ 4. Because there was no 1-bit coin, a dime (10¢) was sometimes called a short bit and 15¢ a long bit.
The gold dollar weighing 1.672 g produced from 1849 to 1889 in 90% gold 10% copper. 1849 to 1853 gold dollar coins were 13 mm across and are called Type I. Type II gold dollars were thinner but larger at 15 mm diameter and were produced from 1854 to 1855. The most common gold dollar is the Type III, struck from 1856 until 1889.
Double-die style struck coin from Ancient India, c 304-232 BCE featuring an elephant on one face and a lion on the other. Since that time, coins have been the most universal embodiment of money. These first coins were made of electrum, a naturally occurring pale yellow mixture of gold and silver that was further alloyed with silver and copper.
The Coinage Act of 1792 established the United States Mint and regulated the coinage of the United States. [3] The act created coins in the denominations of Half Cent (1/200 of a dollar), Cent (1/100 of a dollar, or a cent), Half Dime (also known as a half disme) (five cents), Dime (also known as a disme) (10 cents), Quarter (25 cents), Half Dollar (50 cents), Dollar, Quarter Eagle ($2.50 ...
A special three-coin set of 40% silver coins were also issued by the U.S. Mint in both Uncirculated and Proof. Use of the half-dollar is not as widespread as that of other coins in general circulation; most Americans use dollar coins, quarters, dimes, nickels and cents only, as these are the only coins most often found in general circulation.
The Act specified the issuing of three gold coins comprising a $10 gold coin called an "eagle", a $5 coin called a "half eagle", and a $2.5 coin called a "quarter eagle". [5] The Act also authorized construction of a mint building in Philadelphia , the nation's capital at the time.
This had the effect of placing the nation effectively (although not officially) on the gold standard. The retained weight in the dollar coin was a nod to bimetallism, although it had the effect of further driving the silver dollar coin from commerce. Foreign coins, including the Spanish dollar, were also widely used [9] as legal tender, until 1857.
Seven distinct types of coin composition have been used over the past 200 years: three base coin alloys, two silver alloys, gold, and in recent years, platinum and palladium. The base metal coins were generally alloys of copper (for 2 cent coins and lower), and copper/ nickel (for 3 and 5 cent coins).