1855 $2.50 Liberty Head Quarter Eagle NGC MS65

A treasure for the Liberty Head gold enthusiast, one to cherish for a lifetime. In its gem grade, this is at the top of the graded population at NGC. Even though it had a substantial mintage of 235,480, NGC has graded only 470 examples of the 1855 quarter eagle, awarding the grade of MS65 to only 5 pieces, with none finer. The small population of graded coins points to hoarding during the Civil War and melting later on. Collectors Universe gives this issue a price of $20,000.00 in MS65.

The Second Philadelphia Mint, where this golden treasure was struck.

The long-lasting durability of the Coronet design on the quarter eagle was unmatched in U.S. numismatic history until it was passed by the Roosevelt dime. This makes the Liberty quarter eagle the second longest uninterrupted use of a coin motif without a major design alteration.  When this issue was first struck in 1840, much of the United States was a rough and ready frontier, with millions of bison roaming the Great Plains.

When the final Coronet quarter eagles were minted in 1907, an amazing 67 years later, America was a very different nation than it had been in 1840. The rugged individualism that characterized 19th century America's national spirit remained, but it became a more mature nation, one that made its powerful economic and military presence known around the world.