The second year 1797 is the rarer and more conditionally challenging of just two issues in the Draped Bust, Small Eagle dime series. Although Mint records report that 25,261 dimes were delivered during the calendar year 1797, it is likely that some of those coins were struck from 1796-dated dies. The mintage of 1797-dated examples, therefore, is almost certainly less than that reported. With the first year 1796 satisfying what little contemporary interest there was in setting aside examples of the new nation's initial dime production, fewer high-grade examples of the 1797 have come down to the present day. In fact, there are probably no more than 300 examples of this issue extant in all grades, and the vast majority are circulated to one degree or another.

The two die marriages that make up the 1797-dated issue are easily distinguished by looking at the number of stars on the obverse (both share the same reverse). JR-1, represented here, is the 16 stars variety and was likely struck first since the Mint later defaulted to using just 13 stars to represent the original colonies as opposed to trying to add a new star every time another state joined the Union. Although a bit more plentiful in Mint State than its JR-2 counterpart, JR-1 is very rare at the Choice Uncirculated level, even more so than current certified population data might suggest. Many resubmissions are likely included therein, and the authors of the 2015 reference Bust Dime Variety Attribution Guide (Winston Zack, Louis Scuderi, Michael Sherrill) account for only six or so Uncirculated survivors.

The example to the left was sold by Stack's Bowers Galleries in the D. Brent Pogue Part I Auction, where it realized $199,750.