When it comes to the production of silver rounds, SilverTowne is one of America’s leading private mints. SilverTowne creates everything from custom series of silver rounds and mint-branded rounds to those silver rounds that replicate historic designs from American currency. Fractional-ounce silver rounds are an increasingly common option from SilverTowne, and the Indian Head design is one of its best-selling visuals.
The 1/10 oz Silver Incuse Indian Round
Perhaps the most popular fractional-ounce silver from SilverTowne is its range of 1/10 oz silver rounds. The 1/10 oz Silver Incuse Indian Round from SilverTowne features both the obverse and reverse images from Bela Lyon Pratt’s 1908 design for the Half Eagle and Quarter Eagle coins. The obverse side of the round features the left-profile effigy of an indigenous chieftain wearing a feathered headdress. There are 13 stars around the bust of the figure and an inscription of LIBERTY overhead. Beneath the bust, the SilverTowne pick ax mint mark is featured.
On the reverse side of the Silver Incuse Indian Round is the image of an American bald eagle. In this design, the eagle is perched in left-profile relief with its wings folded at its sides as it sits atop a sheaf of arrows that are wrapped in an olive branch. Inscriptions on this field read 1/10 TROY OUNCE, E PLURIBUS UNUM, IN GOD WE TRUST, and .999 FINE SILVER.
History of the Incuse Indian
Designed by Bela Lyon Pratt, the Incuse Indian design was used on the $2.50 Quarter Eagle and the $5 Half Eagle between 1908 and 1929. The image, as described above, was issued on the obverse and reverse of the coins through the 1920s, though in the case of the Half Eagle, in particular, the coins were issued from 1908 to 1916 and again in 1929. What was perhaps most notable about this final design for the Quarter Eagle and Half Eagle was the use of an incuse strike.
Typically coin designs are struck onto the surface of the coin, creating raised reliefs that you can feel if you were to run your finger across the surface. The Indian Head design from Pratt was struck incuse, meaning the design was effectively cut or stamped into the surface of the coin, leaving a flat relief across the surface with sunken visuals instead.
Background on Pratt
One of Pratt’s significant contributions to art was his involvement in numismatics, the study or collection of coins and medals. He was appointed as an assistant engraver at the United States Mint in 1903, where he collaborated with Chief Engraver Charles E. Barber. Pratt’s most famous numismatic work is the design of the United States half eagle ($5) and quarter eagle ($2.50) gold coins, commonly referred to as the “Indian Head” or “Pratt” design.
Apart from his numismatic works, Pratt created several notable sculptures. One of his most recognized works is the statue of The Struggle of the Two Natures in Man, which was exhibited at the Paris Salon in 1895 and later installed at the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C. This statue portrays a nude male figure in a dynamic pose, representing the internal struggle between good and evil.
Stack Silver with the Incuse Indian
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