1796 Draped Bust Quarter. B-1. Rarity-4+. Good-6 (PCGS). Offered is a lovely circulated example of the historically significant, perennially popular 1796 Draped Bust quarter. Handsome surfaces are warmly and evenly toned in dominant silver-gray patina; the obverse has outlines of warmer steel-russet to the design elements. The strike is well centered, both sides otherwise boldly defined for the grade with the only mentionable softness confined to the reverse border, where much of the denticulation has been lost. This is a desirable coin at the Good-6 level that is sure to appeal to type collectors and early quarter specialists. The 1796 quarter has long been an object of desire for all who form type sets of American coinage. Struck only in this single year, the Draped Bust obverse in combination with the Small Eagle reverse is very rare relative to the demand for it, as no type set can be complete without an example. Survivors are scarce as the mintage was just 6,146 pieces. The Mint required two obverse dies and one reverse to achieve this mintage, with Browning-1, as offered here, the less frequently encountered by a small margin. This is the Low 6 variety of the issue, so named because the digit 6 in the date is more distant from the bust than on the B-2 High 6 variety. PCGS# 5310. NGC ID: 23RA.
