How many eagle designs looking right can you name w/o looking them up??

Lakesammman

Was looking through the red book and some catalogs last night and was surprised that a vast majority of eagle designs face left. Perhaps the mint designers were liberals??

How many eagles face right and can you name them w/o looking them up??

Here's the design that got me thinking about it - J101.

RKKay

What an UGLY coin. It's not even real.

Lakesammman

Wow, great guesses. You're right, the SLQ reverse is another. Any others come to mind??

ziggy29

The Peace Dollar is one. I believe the old "small eagle" reverses of the 1790s faced right, too.

[EDITED TO ADD: I think the twenty cent piece, too -- I looked at your picture of J-101, and I seem to remember the 20 cent piece's eagle being almost identical in shape and form.]

Lakesammman

Peace dollar is one - good eye. Wonder if the orientation facing left had anything to do with the perception of westward expansion?? Looking to the west??

RKKay

Copper Schoolgirl? Oh, no. That faces left. I must be thinking of the Shield Earring.

ccr

Trade Dollar is another. I happen to have one with me when I noticed this thread.

Conder101

The reason the eaglefaces left is related to helraldry. The eagle is also usually facing the viewer which puts the eagles right side on the viewers left. On most designs the eagle is clutching an olive branch in its right talon and the arrows of war in its left. In heraldry the right side is considered the favored or prefered side and the olive branch and the eagle facing that way symbolized a preference for peace over war. (This favoring of the right over the left is widespread in our society, even to the point of appearing in the texts of most if not all of the dominant religions.)

For some reason the Heraldic eagle design on the early US coinage didn't follow the pattern fully. The eagle still faces to the right or prefered side but the olive branch and the arrows have been transposed with the arrows in the favored right position. It has been said that this was an engravers error but I have my doubts since it continued for several years and they had to create punches for many different size dies. If it was simply an error I would have expected to have been corrected before it spread to all of the denominations.

shylock

Great info as always Conder.

I believe the old "small eagle" reverses of the 1790s faced right, too.



Another righty eagle:

Baley

Are we talking about the eagle facing OUR right, or HIS right?

mgoodm3

Do you want your right or radiologic right?

boiler78

here are a couple of 1877 pattern half dollars with the Eagle facing right.

Dennis88

1836 pattern 2 cents.

Lakesammman

Our right, Eagles left.

Condor - Great info - thanks. Why are Marks patterns facing the arrows?? Was there a different mood in the country then?? The 1839 J101, also facing the arrows, was a restrike from the same era, I believe.