2012-D Chester A. Arthur Presidential Dollar
Circulation strike struck at the Denver Mint · 4,060,000 made
- Mintage
- 4,060,000
- Metal
- Manganese brass
- Weight
- 8.1 g
- Diameter
- 26.49 mm
Original illustration. Tap to flip. Not a photograph of the actual coin.
Face value · Metal value · Small premium · Collector premium · Significant rarity. We use bands because prices change daily.
What is a 2012-D Chester A. Arthur Presidential Dollar worth?
In circulated condition it's worth face value. Only uncirculated coins with full original luster, or a recognized variety, carry a premium.
What would make yours worth more:
- Uncirculated condition with full original luster
- A die variety or minting error
For market prices, check recent sold results for certified coins in the same grade.
Quick answers
- Is the 2012-D Chester A. Arthur Presidential Dollar rare?
- No. 4.1 million were made, a typical run for the series. Condition and varieties decide its value, not the date.
- Is the 2012-D Chester A. Arthur Presidential Dollar silver?
- No. It's manganese brass (88.5% copper, 6% zinc, 3.5% manganese, 2% nickel). Circulating silver dollars ended with the 1935 Peace dollar. Some Eisenhower dollars with an S mint mark were made in 40% silver for collectors, but circulation Ike dollars are copper-nickel clad.
- Where is the mint mark on a 2012 Presidential Dollar?
- On the edge, incused along with the date and mottos. On this coin the mark is D, for Denver.
- How many 2012-D Chester A. Arthur Presidential Dollar coins were made?
- 4,060,000.
What to check on your 2012-D
- Make sure the mint mark really is a D. A worn or filled mark can be misread. It's what separates your coin from the 2012-P (6 million made).
- Judge the grade under good light. Check the high points of each portrait and the edge lettering, which should be complete and evenly spaced.
With 4 million made, the 2012-D still turns up in everyday change. Keep yours only if it looks uncirculated or shows a variety; otherwise it's worth face value.
The story of the 2012-D Chester A. Arthur
Denver made 4,060,000 of the Chester A. Arthur presidential dollar. Among the 4 designs of 2012 it was the second smallest Denver run, between Grover Cleveland (second term) (3.9 million) and Grover Cleveland (first term) (4.1 million).
Philadelphia struck more of the same design, 6 million, so the 2012-D is the scarcer of the pair by about 33 percent.
Across the whole program it sits 13th of 40 Denver designs by mintage, where the scarcest is George H. W. Bush at 1.5 million.
Made only for collectors (2012 to 2016)
From 2012 the program continued for collectors only. The Mint struck the remaining presidents in small numbers and sold them in rolls, bags and sets, so these dates are seldom found in change and their mintages are a fraction of the early years.
The original program ended in 2016 with Ronald Reagan. Uncirculated coins from original rolls are the usual way to fill these years in a set and edge lettering errors from this period are much rarer than the early ones.
Elsewhere in US coinage in 2012
The Mint stopped striking Presidential dollars for circulation after the Federal Reserve reported a huge stockpile of unused dollar coins. They were struck for collectors only from 2012.
How to recognize it
The Chester A. Arthur design
Chester A. Arthur succeeded James Garfield in September 1881 as the 21st president and served until 1885. He had previously been Collector of the Port of New York. In 1883 he signed the Pendleton Civil Service Reform Act, which required many federal jobs to be filled on merit. He also signed the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882. His administration began building the steel warships that modernized the Navy.
The Presidential Dollar design
The obverse shows a president with his name and the order and years of his time in office. The reverse shows the Statue of Liberty with UNITED STATES OF AMERICA and $1. The date, mint mark and E PLURIBUS UNUM are lettered on the edge, along with IN GOD WE TRUST on coins struck before 2009, so check the edge for the mint mark.
Mintage chart
Specifications
| Series | Presidential Dollar (2007–2020) |
|---|---|
| Year | 2012 |
| Mint | Denver Mint |
| Mint mark | "D" |
| Strike type | Circulation strike |
| Mintage | 4,060,000 |
| Face value | $1 |
| Composition | Manganese brass (88.5% copper, 6% zinc, 3.5% manganese, 2% nickel) |
| Weight | 8.1 grams |
| Diameter | 26.49 mm |
| Edge | Lettered with the date, mint mark and mottos |
| Designer | Obverses by various artists; Statue of Liberty reverse by Don Everhart |
Other 2012 Presidential Dollar issues
| Coin | Mintage | Type | Silver |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2012-P Chester A. Arthur Presidential Dollar | 6,020,000 | Circulation strike | – |
| 2012-P Grover Cleveland (first term) Presidential Dollar | 5,460,000 | Circulation strike | – |
| 2012-P Benjamin Harrison Presidential Dollar | 5,640,001 | Circulation strike | – |
| 2012-P Grover Cleveland (second term) Presidential Dollar | 10,680,001 | Circulation strike | – |
| 2012-D Chester A. Arthur Presidential Dollar | 4,060,000 | Circulation strike | – |
| 2012-D Grover Cleveland (first term) Presidential Dollar | 4,060,000 | Circulation strike | – |
| 2012-D Benjamin Harrison Presidential Dollar | 4,200,000 | Circulation strike | – |
| 2012-D Grover Cleveland (second term) Presidential Dollar | 3,920,000 | Circulation strike | – |
Mintage: Presidential dollar coins (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0), compiled from US Mint records and the Guide Book of United States Coins. How we build these pages.