RAYS. GEM CAMEO PROOF SURFACES. ONLY 60 STRUCK. CAC.
Chief Coiner Archibald Lowden Snowden apparently refused to include Shield Nickels in 1867 proof sets until the rays were removed from the reverse design. (These elements of the original Shield Nickel design, although not unattractive, complicated the coining process and led to early die breakage.) Treasury Secretary McCulloch complied with Snowden's demand and ordered that the new No Rays examples be included in the year's proof sets.
The changeover from the Rays to the No Rays design occured on February 1, 1867. Even so, we believe that the proof 1867 Rays examples were actually struck after that date. This issue has an unknown mintage, and the coins were probably made at the express request of Mint Director Henry R. Linderman for distribution to his collector friends. Since Walter Breen was unable to trace more than 12-15 distinct examples, we can estimate the mintage for this issue at just 15-25 pieces. These paltry totals confirm the 1867 Rays as the rarest proof in the entire Shield Nickel series of 1866-1883.