1796 Draped Bust Quarter. B-2. Rarity-3. Good-6 (PCGS).Mottled charcoal patina in the fields blends with dominant dove gray, the design elements dressed in lighter antique silver. The borders are mostly distinct and virtually all devices are boldly outlined, mentionable softness confined to the peripheries at 10 oclock on both the obverse and reverse. Smooth in hand, and uncommonly so for a well circulated Draped Bust quarter, this is a handsome and desirable example of the key date 1796 at the assigned grade level. Tompkins Die Stage 2/1.<p>The Browning 2 die marriage is the somewhat more available of the two obverses and is easily identifiable by the very close placement of the 6 to base of the bust of Liberty. Interestingly, the B-2 is also the first of the two to have been struck, coming before the B-1 in sequence. In the early days of the Mint, silver and gold coins were struck essentially to the order of bullion depositors who would request specific denominations to be made with the metal. Because the 2 reales coins were so prevalent in commerce, quarters were seldom requested; indeed, the denomination would not resume production until eight years later in 1804. Smooth in hand, and uncommonly so for a well circulated Draped Bust quarter, this is a handsome and desirable example of the key date 1796 at the assigned grade level.
