1857 25C Liberty Seated Quarter Dollar, No Motto NGC MS67 - Condition Rarity

NGC Coin Explorer tells us, "Mint Director Snowden's illegal policy of exchanging fractional silver coins for deposits of silver bullion continued into 1857, and the result was considerable profits for the depositors and an abundance of 1857 Philadelphia Mint quarter dollars....Buyers should be alert to purchase only well struck examples, as ones having incomplete strikes are quite common." This pristine example offered by AUCM is an anomaly, for it is an overall well-struck piece!

The Seated Liberty design was a collaboration of several hands and minds before it appeared on the silver dollar and other coins. It was U.S. Mint Director Robert B. Patterson, who, in 1835, was desirous of a new coin that was reminiscent of Britannia on British copper. Artist Thomas Sully was tasked with crafting a rendering of Liberty based on a set of British coins and medals. Then Sully's work was given to the newly hired engraver, Christian Gobrecht, who created a series of drawings before producing a copper die for study and presentation in Washington, D.C. The year 1839 saw sculptor Robert Ball Hughes lower the relief, refine the proportions and dynamics of the Liberty, as well as add an eloquent fold of cloth from the right elbow. Thus the design as we know it today should really be called the "Patterson-Sully-Gobrecht-Hughes" design.