Heavily Accented Hair

A must for the Kennedy coin collector is the 1964 Proof with Heavily Accented Hair. This variety was created from the first obverse die used for the Kennedy series. There are a couple of features that can be used to identify the coin. On the reverse, you should notice that the designer's initials feature a straight "G". The obverse will display a weak lower serif on the "I "of Liberty. You will also notice deeper and more hairlines below the part, towards the back of the head, on the part and from the ear towards the part.

No Initials

Another popular variety is coins without the designer's initials. This feature can be found on the 1966-P, 1982-P and 1983-P. These are easily identified by the lack of initials under the eagle's wings on the reverse. These coins also display heavy die scratches on the reverse and obverse, which gives the appearance that the coin was whizzed. On the obverse, you may find that the lower serif of the 1 of the date has been abraded away. The hair under the "R" of Liberty will also have been abraded away. There are also coins that have only a portion of the designers initials abraded away. The result of this has been in coins displaying a weak "G" without the "F" or the initials partially abraded away.

1979-S T1 and T2

While producing the 1979 Kennedy Proofs, the mintmark punch broke toward the end of the production cycle. The Punch was replaced with a new punch that has a ball serifs and open loops. It is the scarcer of the two varieties and is referred to as the 1979 T2. It is easily identified as the T1 appears to be "filled" in the loops while the T2 is a rather clean "S".

1981-S T1 and T2

While producing the 1981 Kennedy Proofs, the mintmark punch broke toward the end of the production cycle. Once again, the punch was replaced with a new punch that has a ball serifs and open loops. It is the scarcer of the two varieties and is referred to as the 1981 T2. Similar to the 1979-S, it is easily identified, as the "S" on the T1 isn't nearly as clean as the "S" on the T2.