20 Cents '1874' Pattern, nickel

The twenty-cent piece had no business existing. Congress passed the Twenty Cent Act in March 1875, but pattern strikes dated 1874 were produced the prior year as part of the internal lobbying process — physical arguments handed to legislators and Treasury officials to approve the denomination. Judd-1358 belongs to that pre-authorization window, struck in nickel rather than the silver eventually chosen for the regular issue.

The denomination itself died after two years of circulation, killed by public confusion with the quarter dollar.