Whether you just have spare change rattling around in your pocket or a whole jar filled with coins, you might want to take a closer look at some of the dimes. If you find one from 1916, it could be worth at least $1,000 — or up to $200,000. You’ll need to make sure it’s a very specific coin known as the 1916-D Mercury dime. The real key to spotting one of these dimes is the “D” initial, which appears on the tail side — meaning it was minted in Denver. There were only 264,000 of these coins produced from that location in 1916. The U.S. Mint continued making Mercury dimes until 1945, but this particular one is both the rarest and most valuable among them. In fact, the 1916-D Mercury dime is in such high demand that even very low grade finds are worth at least $1,000. Like any valuable coin, higher quality will make them worth even more. A pristine mint-grade sold at auction for $207,000 in 2010. Unfortunately, the coins are also prone to being faked by adding “D” marks on 1916 coins minted in Philadelphia. It's recommended that you get third party authentication if you think you’ve spotted one in your coin collection to make sure it’s not a counterfeit.
