Your 1917 Nickel Value — Free Calculator & Complete Guide

The Two Feathers variety is an abraded-die error created when clash marks appeared on a coining die and a mint worker polished the die to remove them. If the clash damage fell near the innermost, shortest feather in the Native American's headdress, the polishing accidentally removed that feather's relief entirely from the die. Every coin struck from that die afterward was missing the third feather — making it a true mint-produced variety rather than damage.

To identify the Two Feathers FS-401, examine the headdress under a 10× loupe and count the feathers near the Native American's neck. A normal coin clearly shows three feathers; the Two Feathers coin shows only the two longer outer feathers, with a completely smooth, uninterrupted surface where the shortest inner feather normally sits. There should be absolutely no trace, ghost image, or faint remnant of the missing feather — if any outline remains, the coin may be a common worn example rather than the attributed variety.

All three mints — Philadelphia, Denver, and San Francisco — produced Two Feathers coins in 1917. The S-mint version is the scarcest of the three. A Philadelphia MS65 example sold for $7,920 at Heritage Auctions, while the 1917-S Two Feathers FS-401 trades from around $45 in lower circulated grades up to $4,440 and beyond in higher states. Attribution by PCGS or NGC dramatically increases realized prices for this variety at any auction.

The Doubled Die Reverse FS-801 is the most significant die-variety specific to the 1917 Philadelphia issue. It was created during the die manufacturing process: when a hub was used to impress the design into a working die, the hub and die were not perfectly repositioned for the second hubbing impression — a standard practice before modern single-squeeze hubbing was adopted. The slight misalignment between the first and second impressions produced a secondary "echo" of the design on the die and on every coin struck from it.

On the coin itself, the doubling is most strongly visible in the reverse lettering. Examine "FIVE CENTS" and "E PLURIBUS UNUM" under a 10× loupe; genuine doubled die doubling shows distinct, separated secondary impressions on the individual letter strokes — not the smeared or shelved appearance of mechanical doubling caused by die bounce. The FS-801 carries the strongest doubling of any 1917 reverse variety, making it easier to identify at lower grades than some subtler doubled die issues.

The FS-801 commands prices that range from around $295 in lower circulated grades up to well over $9,500 for higher-grade mint state examples according to Greysheet data. An MS64 example reportedly realized $1,500 at auction — a meaningful premium over the regular 1917 Philadelphia issue in the same grade. Because the 1917 Philadelphia is well-struck as a rule, high-grade FS-801 examples with sharp strike and clean fields are especially desirable to variety specialists.

The Doubled Die Reverse FS-802 is a secondary variety to the FS-801, created by the same die-hubbing mechanism but with a different misalignment angle and a more localized doubling pattern. Like the FS-801, it originated at the Philadelphia Mint when the hub was re-applied to the working die in a slightly shifted position during production — the standard multiple-hubbing method of the era. The result was a die that produced coins with doubled design elements on the reverse, though the FS-802's doubling is less dramatic than the FS-801's.

The diagnostic marker for the FS-802 is most visible in the "E PLURIBUS UNUM" motto on the reverse, making it somewhat easier to locate under loupe examination than doubling scattered across the full lettering field. Look for doubled outlines specifically on the letters of "E PLURIBUS UNUM" — each letter should show a clearly separated secondary impression. This focused location of the doubling is the key diagnostic distinction between the FS-802 and the FS-801, and allows experienced collectors to attribute the two varieties without relying solely on die-state comparisons.

The FS-802 trades at a narrower but still substantial premium over a regular 1917 Philadelphia nickel, with a Greysheet CPG range of $490 to $2,250. Because its doubling is more localized, it can appear in lower-grade circulated examples that have not been fully attributed, meaning collectors who know what to look for can occasionally find under-valued examples. As with the FS-801, PCGS or NGC attribution is strongly recommended before selling, as it validates the variety and substantially increases buyer confidence and realized prices.

The 1917-D 3½ Legs variety (catalogued as FS-901) is a Denver Mint die error caused by excessive die polishing. A mint worker over-polished the reverse working die — likely to remove the evidence of a die clash — and in doing so removed approximately half of the bison's right front foreleg from the die's surface. Every coin subsequently struck from that die showed a bison whose front leg fades and disappears approximately halfway down, as if the animal is stepping into ground level.

To identify this variety, examine the bison's right front foreleg on the reverse under magnification. On a normal 1917-D Buffalo nickel, this leg is fully formed and extends completely to the ground line. On an FS-901 specimen, the leg is visibly thinner than the other three legs and appears to terminate prematurely — leaving about half a leg where a full leg should be. This is a less extreme version of the famous 1937-D Three-Legged Buffalo, but it was produced nearly two decades earlier from the same type of die-polishing mishap.

The 1917-D 3½ Legs is the rarest of the four major 1917 nickel varieties, particularly in higher circulated and uncirculated grades. Circulated examples in Good condition begin around $120 to $200; Very Good to Fine specimens reach $200 to $700; and a PCGS MS63 example sold for $2,640 at Heritage Auctions in 2019 according to multiple numismatic sources. Greysheet CPG data places the high end of the range at approximately $5,750 for exceptional uncirculated examples. This variety is Denver-mint exclusive and does not exist on Philadelphia or San Francisco coins.