1881 Liberty Head Quarter Eagle. EF-45 (PCGS).This richly original example exhibits warm rose-russet peripheral highlights to otherwise khaki-gold surfaces. Sharply defined over all but a few isolated features, lightly circulated surfaces reveal faint flickers of an original semi-prooflike finish as the coin dips into a light. After delivering (extremely) limited numbers of circulation strikes most years from 1862 through 1877, the Philadelphia Mint stepped up quarter eagle production in 1878 with a mintage of 286,240 coins. That issue was achieved in anticipation of the market achieving parity between gold coins and paper bills on January 1, 1879, as mandated by the federal government. With larger denomination gold coins (especially the double eagle) meeting the needs of export trade and domestic circulation of gold largely confined to the West Coast, however, yearly mintages for the quarter eagle fell off quickly once again, by 1881 the Philadelphia Mint managing an issue of just 640 coins. This is one of the lowest mintage dates in the Liberty Head series, survivors scarce (if not rare) and eagerly sought at all levels of preservation.From the Maurice Snow Collection. Acquired from Manfra, Tordella & Brookes, November 12, 1980.
