Hobo Nickel Art Coin

The Buffalo nickel
When the Indian Head, or Buffalo nickel, was introduced in 1913, it became popular among coin engravers. The big Indian head was a radical departure from previous designs and would not be seen on any subsequent coins. The large, thick profile gave the artists a larger template to work on and allowed for finer detail.
On earlier coins, the head was much smaller in relation to the size of the coin. For example, on a Lincoln cent, the head covers about one-sixth of the area. On the Buffalo nickel, the Indian's head occupies about five-sixths of the area. Moreover, the nickel is a larger coin. Large heads also adorn the Morgan dollar and the Columbian half dollar commemoratives of 1892-93, but these coins were rarely altered due to their high value.