1 Dollar 'Draped Bust Dollar' small eagle

Congress authorized the dollar in 1792, but the Philadelphia Mint didn't strike silver dollars until 1794 — and the first Flowing Hair type gave way almost immediately to the Draped Bust design, introduced in late 1795 using a portrait model attributed to Gilbert Stuart. The small eagle reverse, adapted from a design by Robert Scot, was replaced after 1798 by a heraldic eagle, making this the shorter-lived of the two reverse types.

The 1797 issues are particularly complex, with documented die marriages that show stars arranged in 9x7 and 10x6 configurations — distinctions that matter considerably to specialists working the series.