The reasons people like to collect things are as varied as the item they collect. My daughters like to collect handmade jewelry while I like to collect sports memorabilia. My oldest daughter has a few pieces of coin jewelry that handmade jewelry. She bought this handmade coin jewelry at really low prices, one piece she found at a yard sale, and over the years I expect the coin jewelry she and her sister have to increase in value. Recently I found a great web site loaded with nice coin jewelry, leather cuff jewelry, handcrafted jewelry, and a good selection of beautiful coin necklace items. One piece caught my eye because my dad collected old coins and I remember he had many of this particular coin in his collection, the Mercury dime. The Mercury Dime Ring I found is something dad would have enjoyed wearing and I am thinking of buying two of these pieces of coin jewelry for each of my daughters.
coin jewelry, handmade jewelry   The price is reasonable for this coin jewelry ring and my daughters would enjoy adding this ring to their collections of handmade jewelry. Located at Old Money Corp the web site address is oldmoneycorp.com. The history of the Mercury dime is very interesting. The design of the Mercury dime is that of a “Winged Liberty” and is based on a bust that German immigrant Albert Weinman did in 1913 of Elsie Kachel Stevens, wife of well-known poet Wallace Stevens, who happened to be tenants of a New York City apartment building owned by Weinman. The winged cap was to symbolize freedom of thought. The reverse of the coin depicts the fasces, an ancient symbol of authority, with a battle-ax at the top to represent preparedness and an olive branch beside it to signify love and peace and authority.
Production and release of the new dimes was delayed until later in the year of 1916 as the dies were not quite ready. The Philadelphia and San Francisco mint produced Barber dimes much of 1916 to meet demand while Denver ceased producing Barber dimes in 1914. Once the dies were complete, production began with both Philadelphia and San Francisco cranking out millions of dimes. Denver though produced a mere 264,000 making the 1916-D an instant rarity.
Shortly after the dime began circulating, many people began calling it a “Mercury dime” due to the wings on the cap. Mercury is the Roman god of trade, property and wealth as well as messenger to the other gods. The hat, called a Petasus, is similar to that worn my messengers during the time when Mercury was worshipped. Mercury gained his speed from his wings. Although not the original and intended name for the new time, the term Mercury stuck and that is what it is known as today.
The Mercury dime served Americans through two world wars ending its run in 1945. With the death of Franklin Delano Roosevelt in 1945, there was a strong movement to honor the president and in 1946 the Roosevelt dime began production and is still used today.