Other Legal Tender

Other Legal Tender Available from Silver.com

While the vast majority of bullion coins available at Silver.com have legal tender status from the nation and mint of issue, these products do not represent the full extent of legal tender available at Silver.com. There is a growing trend in the production of modified Federal Reserve Notes and replica tribute coins that offer collectors of legal tender designs another outlet in capturing beautiful works of art featured on paper money and coins. Below, you can learn a little more about the variety of different legal tender available at Silver.com.

Legal Tender Notes

Some of America’s greatest monetary designs came from issues other than historic gold and silver coins. In fact, the paper money issued by the United States around the turn of the 20th century is particularly notable for its use of detailed, artistic images on the face of Silver Certificates, United States Notes, National Bank Notes, and other predecessor forms of paper money before the Federal Reserve Note. The 1890s was a golden age of paper money design, with the Silver Certificate and United States Note programs both offering designs that were like pocket-sized works of art for Americans to carry around at all times.

While Silver.com does not carry the original versions of these notes, as many are gone entirely and remaining specimens of others number in the low thousands, there are enhanced, modern Federal Reserve Notes that bring these designs back to life for modern collectors.

For example, designs such as the famous effigy of Running Antelope and the American bison from the 1901 $10 Bison Note are present on modern US bills. These images have been replicated in high-definition detail on the obverse of modern bills through a proprietary process that covers the image of US Presidents on the $1, $2, and $5 bills to recreate these historic images. Each Federal Reserve Note is authentic US legal tender in uncirculated, crisp, clean condition that an authorized dealer picked from sealed Federal Reserve packs. The notes have unique images only on the obverse, with the traditional reverse left untouched in the design process.

In most cases, these beautiful legal tender notes are presented in a bi-fold display folio. The folio sets the legal tender note on the right and comes with a detailed Certificate of Authenticity on the left that offers all the information on the bill and its historic design.

Clad & Tribute Coins

In addition to legal tender notes, you will also find clad and tribute coins available at Silver.com. When it comes to tribute coins, you are most likely to find some of America’s greatest coin designs replicated to the most minute detail, with one major difference. The coins are not of solid silver or gold and do not have legal tender status. Though many tribute coins will show inscriptions of a face value reflective of the coin design it honors, you will also find an inscription of “COPY” on one face of the coin that denotes it is not a legal tender piece. As an example, consider the Gold American Buffalo Tribute Coin:

• The Gold Buffalo Tribute coin has the authentic design from James Earle Fraser that first graced the US Nickel from 1913 to 1938 and now graces the Gold American Buffalo bullion coin from the US Mint. The tribute coin has the stoic indigenous figure on the obverse and the American bison on the reverse. All of the US Mint’s inscriptions are present, including the $50 face value. However, beneath the bison’s frame on the reverse is the inscription “COPY.” Additionally, the coins are clad in 24-karat gold rather than being struck on a pure gold blank.

The idea behind tribute coins such as the Gold American Buffalo Tribute Coin is to create an affordable collector piece. You can own one of the most coveted American coin designs with the enhanced beauty of gold visuals, without paying the much higher premiums that come with a solid gold coin.

Finally, there are other clad coins that are still legal tender items, but like tribute coins, are not made of pure silver or gold. Several versions of US currency exist, such as the Kennedy Half Dollar. Though made from cupro-nickel, the design is clad in 24-karat gold for enhanced visual appeal.

Collecting Other Legal Tender at Silver.com

Our customer service team is standing by to assist you with any inquiries you might have about our stock of other legal tender items. You can call us on the phone at 888-989-7223, chat with us live online, or simply send us an email. Please reference our Payment Methods page if you have any questions regarding applicable purchasing minimums and maximums or what types of payment methods we accept at Silver.com.