By Charles Morgan and Hubert Walker for CoinWeek Notes …..
The last Draped Bust Quarter Dollar was minted in 1807, the same year that the United States Mint hired engraver John Reich. Reich, a German immigrant, was tasked with creating new coin designs.
His modified portrait of Liberty and the reverse eagle appeared on the Capped Bust Half Dollar and Capped Bust Half Eagle $5 gold coin in 1807, the Capped Bust Quarter Eagle in 1808, and then the Capped Bust Dime in 1809.
The Quarter Dollar Returns
After a seven-year gap in production, the quarter dollar was minted with these new designs in 1815, after the Planter’s Bank of New Orleans specifically ordered quarter dollar coins in July of that year. The Mint, which had neither quarters on hand nor dies with which to strike new ones, initially requested that the Bank accept dimes instead. In an August 14 letter, the bank reiterated its demand for quarters.
To bring the quarter back, Reich adapted his design for the quarter-sized dies. Production was further compromised by a fire at the Mint in early January 1816, which halted the mintage of gold and silver coins. Quarters were not produced again until 1818, and yearly thereafter (except for 1826) until the end of the type in 1828.
How Much is the Capped Bust Quarter Worth?
Prices for business strikes are moderate up to Extra Fine grades, advancing steadily and becoming quite expensive as Gem and finer. A few hundred pieces have been certified for each year that quarters were produced for circulation, though some varieties are represented by only a few pieces. The 1822 25C over 50C variety is expensive in all grades, and the low-mintage 1823/2 overdate is extremely expensive. A few Prooflike business strikes have been certified.
A small number of Proofs from each year are listed in census/population reports, which include pieces with a Cameo designation. All Proofs are expensive to extremely expensive, with the rare original 1827/3 at the top of the price range, closely followed by the 1827/3 restrikes.
In-Depth Date Analysis by CoinWeek Notes
Extended Coverage on CoinWeek
- Classic U.S. Coins for Less Than $500 Each, Part 26: Capped Bust Quarters
- The Marvelous Pogue Family Coin Collection, Part 5: 1820 Capped Bust Quarters
- The Spectacular Newman-Jung Coin and Other 1818/5 Capped Bust Quarters
Capped Bust Quarter collectors on a budget should check out rare coin expert Greg Reynolds’s advice in Part 26 of his Classic U.S. Coins for Less Than $500 Each. But don’t skip the depth of analysis he brings to the series in his discussion of several important pedigreed specimens.
Writing for PCGS, former CoinWeek contributor Joshua McMorrow-Hernandez talks about the intriguing “E” and “L” counterstamps and proffers several theories about their origins.
Counterfeit Detection
Author Jack Young and the Dark Side Group continue their efforts to inform the collector about online counterfeits with this entry in their series on fake early quarters.
Design
Obverse:
The obverse portrait is of a more fulsome Liberty than the previous Draped Bust style, which led to unfortunate though unsubstantiated comments that Reich had modeled the effigy after his “fat mistress”. Liberty is wearing a mobcap (a fashionable woman’s headdress of the period, not a Liberty cap as it is sometimes erroneously labeled) with a band displaying the word LIBERTY. Long curling hair drapes over the forehead, around the ear, across the shoulders, and down the back. A flowing robe covers the bust and shoulder, fixed with a clasp above the shoulder. Thirteen six-pointed stars surround the portrait–seven to the left and six to the right–just inside a denticulated rim. The date is centered at the bottom.
Reverse:
The reverse displays a left-facing eagle with outstretched though partially folded wings and a Union shield across its breast. The sinister claw (viewer’s right) clutches three arrows, while the dexter claw (viewer’s left) holds an olive branch. The legend UNITED STATES OF AMERICA runs inside the denticulated rim around the top two-thirds of the coin, and the denomination 25 C. is below the eagle. A concentric banner with the motto E PLURIBUS UNUM is above the eagle’s head, below STATES OF. All coins were minted at Philadelphia; no mintmark is present. Some 1815- and 1825-dated quarters have an “E” or “L” counterstamp above Liberty’s head; these marks are unmentioned in official records and their purpose is unknown. Some have speculated that these letters indicate the use of quarters as school prizes that were saved as keepsakes, thus accounting for the high grade of most survivors.
Varieties
Several varieties are known. While most are overdates or overpunches, there are also design variations like the 1819 Large 9 and Small 9 and the 1820 Large O and Small O. Other well-known varieties include the 1818/5, the 1822 25C over 50C, the 1823/2, the 1824/2, the 1825/2, the 1825/3, the 1825/4, the 1827/3 (Proof), and the 1828 25C over 50C. All known 1823 and 1824 quarters are overdates. The 1827 restrikes are well-known because of the rarity of issues for the year and were likely made surreptitiously in the late 1850s, some with rusted dies and some overstruck on older quarters (a piece struck on an 1806 quarter is known). Quarters dated 1815 and 1825 (including 1825 overpunch varieties) are often seen with “E” and “L” counterpunches, likely private marks rather than Mint-produced.
Coin Specifications
| Capped Bust Quarter, Large Size | |
| Years of Issue: | 1815-28 |
| Mintage (Circulation): | High: 361,174 (1818); Low: 4,000 (1827, possibly dated 1825; only Proof strikes known for the date. Next lowest was 17,800 coins in 1823) |
| Mintage (Proof): | High: 30-40 (1827, estimated); Low: 5 (1823 and 1824, estimated. None known for 1815, 1818, and 1819) |
| Alloy: | 89.24% silver, 10.76% copper |
| Weight: | ±6.74 g |
| Diameter: | ±27.00 mm |
| Edge: | Reeded |
| OBV Designer: | John Reich |
| REV Designer: | John Reich |
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Additional References
Bowers, Q. David. The Experts Guide to Collecting & Investing in Rare Coins. Whitman Publishing.
–. A Guide Book of United States Type Coins. Whitman Publishing.
Breen, Walter. Walter Breen’s Encyclopedia of U.S. Coins. Doubleday.
Guth, Ron, and Jeff Garrett. United States Coinage: A Study by Type. Whitman Publishing.
Taxay, Don. The U.S. Mint and Coinage. Arco Publishing.
Tompkins, Steve. Early United States Quarters, 1796-1838. Steve Tompkins and Destani, Inc.
Yeoman, R.S., and Jeff Garrett (editor). The Official Red Book: A Guide Book of United States Coins. Whitman Publishing.
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