|
The
Standing Liberty Quarter
History of
the Standing Liberty Quarter
The radical change
in our coinage that was taking place in the early 20th century was not quite
done by 1916. With the new
 Lincoln cent and Buffalo nickel now in circulation, and changes to gold
coinage, it was now time for a change in silver, specifically,
the dime, quarter and half dollar to undergo a facelift and
eliminate the uninteresting Barber designs. In late 1915 a
design competition was announced to replace the designs on the
dime, quarter and half dollar. In 1916, Mint Director Robert
Woolley told Mint Chief Engraver Charles Barber that Hermon
Atkins MacNeil’s design had been accepted for the quarter and
that MacNeil would be visiting the Mint to obtain information
about preparing the needed relief models. As Walter Breen
writes in his book entitled Complete Encyclopedia of U.S and
Colonial Coins, “Barber was as usual, completely
uncooperative.” Assistant engraver George Morgan, who would
later become chief engraver upon Barber’s death, was apparently
more helpful. In late May of 1916, with Morgan’s help,
MacNeil’s models that could be used for fie preparation were
approved.
The first Standing Liberty Quarter coins came of the Philadelphia presses on December
16, 1916 and the series continued through 1930. A mere 52,000
pieces were minted in those last two weeks of 1916 and were
released to the public along with 1917 dated coins in early
1917.
Legend has it that shortly after the release there was a public outcry over the
exposed right breast of Lady Liberty. Others complained that
the small eagle looked like a pigeon. Whether this led to the
design change is not well documented as there were also stacking
issues with the Type I coins. In any event, the design was
changed in 1917 to cover the right breast with chain-mail as
well as minor changes to the back of the coin which moved three
stars beneath the eagle, thereby raising and centering the
eagle. Thus was born the Type II Standing Liberty Quarter.
After a few years in circulation it became apparent that the
date was wearing off way to fast. Unlike the Buffalo Nickel,
someone at the mint did make changes and in 1925, the date area
was lowered as to be protected by the rim of the coin resulting
longer wear on the date field. Thus was born Type III which
many consider a subtype.
In production for only fifteen years, the Standing Liberty
quarter suffered an early demise. 1932 marked the 200th
anniversary of George Washington’s birth was introduced as a
circulating commemorative which is still in circulation today.
Collectibility
General
As one of our most beautiful coins, Standing Liberty quarters
garner quite a following. A complete set in circulated
condition, except for the 1916, can be had with only a few coins
going for over $100 in circulated condition. Many of the later
dates (1925 and after) in decent condition can be had for under
$5.00. When grading this series for higher end coins, look to
the right knee and center of the shield on the obverse and the
eagle’s breast and left wing on the reverse as these will show
wear before other areas. Additionally, very well struck coins
will be graded as Full Head (FH). Coins graded as FH are much
scarcer and will demand a substantial premium over non FH in the
same grade. In order to be graded FH the coin must show three
leaves in Liberty’s hair, the hairline along Liberty’s brow must
be complete and the ear indentation must be evident.
Key/Semi Key Dates
Without a doubt, the key for the series for the common collector
is the 1916 coin. With a mintage of only 52,000 it would seem
that this coin should be quite rare. And while it is, it is not
has hard to obtain, for a price, as it would seem. As with most
new series, collectors and the general public hoarded the first
coins of new issues. A G4 coin still retails for about $3500,
so it is not cheap. In terms of scarcity in high grades, the
1916 date has more FH MS-67 coins graded by PCGS than any other
date expect the 1930-P and 1930-S. Still, the 1916 will cost
you more due to its popularity. A MS67 FH lists for over
$90,000.00
The year 1917 consisted of Type I and Type II coins. Although
the 1917-D Type II had a higher mintage (6.2 million vs. 1.5
million), the 1917-D type II in good (G4) condition retails for
$40.00 vs. the 1917D Type I which goes for around $28. Since
there were so very few 1916 coins, and they were produced in
Philadelphia only, the folks out west probably thought 1917 was
the first year and hoarded the first coins, that being Type I
and ignored Type II coins of the same year. This price
differential is also apparent in the 1917-S Types. Philadelphia
minted far more coins in both Types in 1917 than the other two
mints so there is not a big difference in price for this
mint/date.
For the common collector, filling the earlier dates, those
before 1925 can become costly. Coins in G4 grades are usually
not that eye appealing and can still cost you well over $100
such as the 1919 D & S, 1921 and 1923-S. Obtaining these in
higher grades will reach near $1000 and well over $1000 for the
1923-S. For most other dates prior to 1925, consider spending
$50-100 per coin. As we get into coins dated 1925 and after,
prices drop considerably. This primarily due to the change to
the date that enabled to withstand more wear. As previously
mentioned coins dated 1924 and before wore the date out
quickly. Coins dated 1925 and after were better preserved. It
was not uncommon to find dated Standing Liberty quarters in
circulation as late as the 1950’s. There one exception though
to those 1925 and later quarters. The 1927-S was the 2nd
lowest produced coin of the series with a mintage of only
396,000. Although this is a very low mintage, you can still
obtain a F-12 coin for less than $100. Coins above that grade
jump in price considerably. It is interesting to note that the
famed 1932 D and S Washington quarters had higher mintages than
the 1927-S yet you can get a G4 1927-S for less than $35.00 yet
the 1932 D or 1932 S will cost you around $150. This anomaly
changes though for higher grades as the 1927 S skyrockets in
price while the 1932 quarters go up in price gradually until you
reach mint state coins.
As with many series of the day, Philadelphia was the main
producer of coins while the Denver mints and San Francisco mints
had lower production totals making mint-marked coins “generally”
more difficult to find and more expensive.
Errors
The only highly recognized error in the series is the 1918/17
overdate. This coin in FH Mint State condition exceeds the
prices of the 1916 coin. (in MS-65 FH the 1916 lists for $35,000
while the 1918/17 lists for $300,000). PCGS has not yet
certified a FH ms-65 FH 1918/17 overdate and has certified only
34 FH coins. In G4 condition the coins lists for $1,700.
There have been other reported errors/varieties such as
small/large mint marks for the 1928-s. If you are into
collecting errors and varieties for the Standing Liberty
quarters then the book for you is Standing Liberty Quarters:
Varieties and Errors, written by Robert Knauss.
Proofs
There were no official proofs produced for the Standing Liberty
quarter although several satin-finish proofs of 1916 and 1917
are reported to exist.
Vital
Statistics Summary
Key Coin Info
Designed by:
Hermon A. MacNeil
Issue dates: 1916-1917
Composition: 0.900 part silver, 0.100 part copper
Diameter: 23.4 mm
Weight: 96.45 grains
Edge: Reeded
Business strike mintage: 12,253,200
Proof mintage: None
Designed by:
Hermon A. MacNeil
Issue dates: 1917-1930
Composition: 0.900 part silver, 0.100 part copper
Diameter: 23.4 mm
Weight: 96.45 grains
Edge: Reeded
Business strike mintage: 214,516,400
Proof mintage: None
Mintage
Date Mint Pop
1916 P 52,000
1917 P 8,792,000
1917 D 1,509,200
1917 S 1,952,000
1917 P 13,880,000
1917 D 6,224,400
1917 S 5,522,000
1918 P 14,240,000
1918 D 7,380,000
1918 S 11,072,000
1918/17 -
1919 P 11,324,000
1919 D 1,944,000
1919 S 1,836,000
1920 P 27,860,000
1920 D 3,586,400
1920 S 6,380,000
1921 P 1,916,000
1923 P 9,716,000
1923 S 1,360,000
1924 P 10,920,000
1924 D 3,112,000
1924 S 2,860,000
1925 P 12,280,000
1926 P 11,316,000
1926 D 1,716,000
1926 S 2,700,000
1927 P 11,912,000
1927 D 976,400
1927 S 396,000
1928 P 6,336,000
1928 D 1,627,600
1928 S 2,644,000
1929 P 11,140,000
1929 D 1,358,000
1929 S 1,764,000
1930 P 5,632,000
1930 S 1,556,000
Standing Liberty Quarter News
Updated : Thu, 02 Sep 2010 20:20:37 GMT+00:00
Publ.Date : Fri, 27 Aug 2010 13:38:21 GMT+00:00
Publ.Date : Fri, 13 Aug 2010 15:00:01 GMT+00:00
Publ.Date : Wed, 18 Aug 2010 15:16:35 GMT+00:00
Publ.Date : Wed, 25 Aug 2010 17:17:37 GMT+00:00
Publ.Date : Wed, 01 Sep 2010 21:37:43 GMT+00:00
|
|
