The Early Quarter Dollars of the United States

No. 3

Obverse: The same as [Browning] 2.

Reverse: The same as 1835 [Browning] 1, 1836 [Browning] 1, and 1837 [Browning] 1. (Die cracked from top edge through STATES, except last S, to D in UNITED.)

Curl begins minutely right of left serif of 7; date almost straight.
Missing wing feathers at right; cracked through D STATE.
Browning-3; Clapp-1; Duphorne-86; included in Breen-3933; not in Haseltine.
Rarity-5, high. Possibly Rarity-6.

The following are the best survivors known to me.

1. Bergen:100. Uncirculated.
2. 1981 Greater N.Y. Convention:774 (S 5/1-2/81)
3. Clapp, Eliasberg Estate. Close to Uncirculated.
4. Col. Green. Plate VIII. EF.
5. Boyd, WGC:139, Kern:1425. EF.
6. Leon Goodman:950. "EF-40, "cleaned, retoned.
7. Julius Reiver. "VF-20."

Numerical Condition Census (RWM, Sr.): 60, 60, 58, 55, 55, 45.

No. 4

Obverse: In the date, 7 practically not under curl, top of 7 at extreme right about even with extreme left of curl; upper left star points to lower part of upper curl; lower left star most distant from bust, but nearer than in either [Browning] 1 or 2, about half as far away as in [Browning] 2; upper right is slightly nearer cap; lower right near the hair.

Reverse: The same as 1835 [Browning] 8, 1836 [Browning] 1, and 1837 [Browning] 1 and 3.

Obverse die perfect in early impressions; in later pieces cracked entirely across, top to bottom over bust, except at the neck where it runs through field in front. The reverse cracked as mentioned above in No. 3.

Of the four varieties found, [Browning] 2, appears to be the most common, for apparently the obverse die never cracked and was used with two different reverses. The other three appear to be somewhat rarer and about equally so.

Curl begins about over right tip of 7.

Missing wing feathers at right; cracked through D STATE.

Browning-4; not in Clapp; Duphorne-85; included in Breen-3933; not in Haseltine.

Rarity-6.

Die States: I. Perfect obverse.
II. Bisecting obverse crack as Browning describes. This may come with an intermediate state. [Breen] recalled being offered one which was cracked but this crack was not bisecting. This was offered to [Breen] at the 1976 ANA show. [He] passed, reconsidered, and found to my intense dismay that the piece had been sold. [He] was never able to retrace it. (-Doug Winter).

1. J.A. Stack:44. State II. Uncirculated.
2. Wolfson:799, Speir Estate sale:31. State I. Uncirculated.
3. NN 57:626. State II. Uncirculated.
4. Auction '79:43. State I. Uncirculated.
5. NN. 54:1111, Bergen:101. EF.
6. Neil:912. EF.
7. WGC:140, State I. VF.
8. WGC:141. State II. VG-F.
9. Winter Collection. State I. VG. Cherrypicked at the 1981 Bay State Show.

Numerical Condition Census (RWM, Sr. [circa 1992]): 65, 64, 63, 60, 60, 55.

No. 5

Curl begins about over right tip of 7.
Stem extends beyond right side of C and is close to it.
Obverse is B-4, perfect die.
Reverse new. This has repunching in C of 25 C.; A T unusually far apart; E below M-R.
Not in Browning; not in Clapp; Duphorne-94 (Addendum A); included in Breen-3933; not in Haseltine.
Rarity-7.

Proofs:
1. Philip G. Straus Estate, 1957 N.Y. Metropolitan:1730. Fields scratched.
2. Eliasberg Estate. Impaired freak; one striking far off center, others normal.
3. "Dupont":1813. Carelessly made.
Business strikes:
1. Stack's 3/18/55, Norweb:1560. Uncirculated, $5,500.
2. Jules Reiver. EF.
3. JRCS 010, nearly EF ("VF-30").
4. Private collection, VF+. ANS negative 56-385. Same as above?
5. JRCS 008. Fine+.
6. Robert W. Miller, Sr. Fine.
7 and 8. JRCS 181, 002. Both Fine.

Few others in lower grades, cherrypicked in the 1950s.

Numerical Condition Census (RWM, Sr. [circa 1992]): 63, 40, 30, 15, 15, 12.