Released to the public in 1913, The Indian Head, or Buffalo nickel, exhibited distinct features of a Native American chief on one side and an American bison (buffalo) on the reverse side. A groundbreaking ceremony for an American Indian memorial presided over by President Taft on Staten Island also accompanied the initial distribution of the coin. Most of the 40 coins supplied by the Denver, San Fransisco and Philadelphia mints on that day were given to several Native American chiefs in attendance. Unfortunately, the memorial was never established but the buffalo nickle continued to be circulated until production of the coin ceased in 1938.
Who was the Indian on the Nickel?
James Fraser, American sculptor and designer of the buffalo nickle, claimed the portrait of the Native American was a composite of Two Moons, a Cheyenne Chief; Iron Tail, a Lakota chief; and Kiowa Chief Big Tree, three American Indians he thought possessed features of the "ideal" Native American. However, the true identity of the iconic Indian profile remains a little uncertain due to the inconsistent stories Fraser often told concerning this legendary portrait.
Black Diamond, the Buffalo
Fraser stated that he based the likeness of the buffalo on a bison named Black Diamond that lived in New York City's Central Park zoo. Interestingly, one variety of the Buffalo nickel series emerged as the famous 1937-D "three-legged buffalo" nickel, which featured Black Diamond with three legs instead of four. A Denver mint pressman, trying to eliminate marks caused by dies touching each other, inadvertently weakened or removed one of Black Diamond's legs. Denver mint inspectors failed to discover the error before thousands of buffalo nickels had already been created containing this error.
Historical Trivia about the Buffalo Nickel
*Design flaws involving raised areas on the nickel caused parts of the nickel to wear away quickly, especially dates and the words "FIVE CENTS".
*Critics of the coin asserted that its rough surface would allow counterfeiters to easily manufacture fake five-cent pieces.
*During a short-lived recession in 1922, no new buffalo nickels were minted
*John Big Tree capitalized on claiming to be the original model for the buffalo nickle until he died in 1967. Although he was 92, he commonly told people he was well over 100 years old
*The head of Black Diamond (killed for his meat in 1915), continues to be exhibited at a few coin conventions today. In addition, Fraser is quoted as saying that Black Diamond was the "contrariest animal" at the zoo and that the animal would not allow him side views for sketch purposes
*Composition of the buffalo nickle was 25 percent nickel and 75 percent copper
In 1938, the buffalo nickle was replaced by the Jefferson nickel, which remains in circulation today.
For more information regarding the history of the buffalo nickel , please shop online with MyReviewsNow.net 
No comments:
Post a Comment