To describe the 1969-D Jefferson 5-cent coin with six full steps, noted author Q. David Bowers uses a curious turn of phrase. He calls this coin the “Golden Fleece.”

In ancient Greek mythology, the Golden Fleece is the coat of a winged ram that could imbue its holder with a legitimate claim to be king. One could interpret Bowers’ comment to mean, “the owner of a 1969-D nickel with six full steps is the King of Jefferson Nickel Collectors.”

Starting in the mid-1970s, specialist dealers and collectors focused heavily on the strike quality of Jefferson 5-cent coins. Specifically, they wanted examples with fully delineated steps on the depiction of Monticello on the coin’s reverse. The best struck coins have six full steps. For some dates where six-full-step examples cannot be found, five-full-step coins are sought after.

Various methods of counting steps have been devised over the years. Put simply, five lines divide the six steps on the building. If all five lines extend fully across, without any gaps or contact marks intersecting them, the coin has six full steps. If only the top four lines appear uninterrupted, the coin has five full steps.

Grading services note the presence of steps automatically when grading Mint State Jefferson 5-cent coins. Numismatic Guaranty Corp. will designate coins as either 5FS, when five steps are present, or 6FS when six steps are present. Professional Coin Grading Service describes coins simply as FS when at least five full steps are present.

The series with respect to full steps is expertly described in Bernard A. Nagengast’s book, The Jefferson Nickel Analyst. Nagengast explains that a new reverse hub was put into service in 1940, which was then used to make reverse dies for 30 years: “... progressive wear on the master hub for the Reverse of 1940 resulted in more and more loss of detail until the hub was ultimately retired in 1970. For this reason, nickels of the 1950s and 1960s are never found with as robust an appearance as earlier dates.” The dies made from this hub simply did not possess the level of detail necessary to produce full steps.

Nagengast also provides rarity estimates for each Jefferson 5-cent coin with five and six full steps. In five full steps the rare 1969-D 5-cent coin is rated at 1 in 10,000 coins, the lowest availability in the series. In six full steps, it is described as “unverified,” but as did Bowers, he suggests that this elusive wonder-coin exists. And the value of the Golden Fleece? Low population full step Jefferson 5-cent coins already command five-figure prices. When found, expect this coin to set a new record. Being the king doesn’t come cheap.

To describe the 1969-D Jefferson 5-cent coin with six full steps, noted author Q. David Bowers uses a curious turn of phrase. He calls this coin the “Golden Fleece.”

In ancient Greek mythology, the Golden Fleece is the coat of a winged ram that could imbue its holder with a legitimate claim to be king. One could interpret Bowers’ comment to mean, “the owner of a 1969-D nickel with six full steps is the King of Jefferson Nickel Collectors.”

Starting in the mid-1970s, specialist dealers and collectors focused heavily on the strike quality of Jefferson 5-cent coins.

Specifically, they wanted examples with fully delineated steps on the depiction of Monticello on the coin’s reverse. The best struck coins have six full steps. For some dates where six-full-step examples cannot be found, five-full-step coins are sought after.

Various methods of counting steps have been devised over the years. Put simply, five lines divide the six steps on the building. If all five lines extend fully across, without any gaps or contact marks intersecting them, the coin has six full steps. If only the top four lines appear uninterrupted, the coin has five full steps.

Grading services note the presence of steps automatically when grading Mint State Jefferson 5-cent coins. Numismatic Guaranty Corp. will designate coins as either 5FS, when five steps are present, or 6FS when six steps are present. Professional Coin Grading Service describes coins simply as FS when at least five full steps are present.

The series with respect to full steps is expertly described in Bernard A. Nagengast’s book, The Jefferson Nickel Analyst. Nagengast explains that a new reverse hub was put into service in 1940, which was then used to make reverse dies for 30 years: “... progressive wear on the master hub for the Reverse of 1940 resulted in more and more loss of detail until the hub was ultimately retired in 1970. For this reason, nickels of the 1950s and 1960s are never found with as robust an appearance as earlier dates.” The dies made from this hub simply did not possess the level of detail necessary to produce full steps.

Nagengast also provides rarity estimates for each Jefferson 5-cent coin with five and six full steps. In five full steps the rare 1969-D 5-cent coin is rated at 1 in 10,000 coins, the lowest availability in the series. In six full steps, it is described as “unverified,” but as did Bowers, he suggests that this elusive wonder-coin exists. And the value of the Golden Fleece? Low population full step Jefferson 5-cent coins already command five-figure prices. When found, expect this coin to set a new record. Being the king doesn’t come cheap.

Scott schechter is a grader at NGC and co-author of 100 Greatest U.S. Modern Coins. He can be reached by email directed to him at scott@ngccoin.com.