The Early Quarter Dollars of the United States

No.5

Obverse: Date equally spaced; lower left star and curl are twice as far apart as opposite star and drapery; lower left star and curl are further apart than in any other variety; upper left star and bottom of L slightly further apart than opposite star and top of Y.

Reverse: In the value, 25 C., C and the arrows are about the same distance from the eagle's tail; C is slightly further from the tail than in any other variety; eagle's tail long and tapering; end of olive branch is over center of C; in the wing at right, foot of A touches side of second and rests on end of third feather.

Obverse die perfect in early impressions; reverse having a slight crack from left edge to tip of second feather in eagle's wing. In later pieces obverse is cracked from upper edge to top of Y at left, extending down to near bottom of Y, then curving to tip of nose; reverse cracked as mentioned above.

Apparently a very rare variety, but four pieces found in seven years; three with perfect obverse, one of them sharp, the other two are poor. The fourth piece is sharp with the obverse cracked.

Left star too closely spaced; first farthest from curl.

A at second and third feathers; die scratch from rim to second feather at left.

Browning-5; Clapp-6; Duphorne-13; included in B-38888; Haseltine-6.

High Rarity-6, nearly Rarity-7.

Die States:
I. Perfect obverse.
II. Obverse crack described by Browning

Most survivors are in low grades. The best seen follow:

1. Grant Pierce:598-Spier Estate sale:5. State I. More or less Uncirculated, centers at weak.
2. Boyd, WGC:20, Kern:1391. State I. AU.
3. Eliasberg Estate. State I. About EF.
4. Browning, Col. Green. State II. Plate I. About EF.
5. Boyd, WGC:21. State II. VF. Possibly the coin pictured in "Empire Review 14" (8/61)
6. Bergen:14. State I. Fine.
7. Pelletreau:667. State II. VG.
8. Leon Goodman, NASCA 7/29-30/82:872. "VG-8," reverse pin scratches (not illustrated).

This obverse was among others sold by the Mint as scrap metal in either 1816 or 1833, and at some later date (in the 1850s or 60s?) unidentified parties muled it with the reverse of an 1807 cent with large fraction (not in Sheldon, RI joined). The only impression recorded (weak enough to be graded About Good) was in a Bowers & Ruddy mail bid sale, 11/26/58:83 (Empire Topics 3, 10-12/58).

Numerical Condition Census (RWM, Sr. [circa 1992]): 63. 60, 60, 45, 40, 40.

No. 6

Obverse: Date equally spaced; lower left star and curl are twice as far apart as opposite star and drapery; upper left star and bottom of L are slightly nearer than the opposite star and top of Y.

Reverse: The same as [Browning] 5.

Obverse die perfect; reverse cracked as in [Browning] 5; also a more pronounced crack above eagle's wing at left, crescent shaped, from edge to edge, connecting top of S and T in STATES.

A rare variety.

RT extremely close, T lower.

A at second and third feathers; die scratch from rim to second feather at left.

Browning-6; Clapp-4; Duphorne-14; included in B-3888; Haseltine-4.

Rarity-5, High.

Die States:
I. Perfect.
II. Arc crack through tops of ST. Rarer than [State] 1.

Usually in low grades, cherrypicked unattributed. The best ones seen at auction include:

1. Charles Jay:141, Scanlon:947. State I. Uncirculated.
2. Auction '80:114. State II. EF-AU, obverse field scrape.
3. Amwest VIP Invitational:449 (11/19-20/81), as "B-5." State II. EF.
4. F.C.C. Boyd. WGC:22. VF.

See following unlisted variety, "[Browning]-10." Herb Bergen had several of the latter misattributed as "B-6," according to Jules Reiver, who had seen them.

Numerical Condition Census (RWM, Sr. [circa 1992]): 60, 50, 40, 40, 30, 20.