Classic Head Gold Collection, Part 11, 1838 Quarter Eagle
BillJones
Posts: 34,820 ✭✭✭✭✭
Mintage 47,030
Estimated Number of Survivors 400
The 1838 quarter eagle is another Philadelphia Mint coin that is surprising scarce. Once more a limited mintage and a comparatively small number of survivors is the cause.
The 1838 quarter eagle was more sharply struck than the 1837 pieces. That is one of the reasons why it is easier to find this date and mintmark combination in the higher grades. There is one example of the 1838 quarter eagle which PCGS has graded MS-67. That is the highest grade on record for the Classic Head quarter eagle.
The piece shown above easily qualifies for MS-61 using today’s standards. The surfaces have been lightened a bit from their original color, but the fields are relatively smooth with no major marks. As such this coin is a very nice example for the issue at this grade level.
I purchased this piece in a David Lawence auction last week. Here are their photos.
Comments
May just be the lighting, but that gold seems definitely a lighter shade of yellow than your other pieces. Cheers, RickO
This coin does not have its orginal color. It has been lightened a bit, although it's not what some people call "white gold" which I find undesirable.
The 1838 quarter eagle can be distinguished from other dates just by its much wider rim, which likely is the result of introducing Classic Head coinage to Peale's newly employed milling machine. That, and the new steam-powered toggle press helped create a great strike.
I had a look at my 1829 quarter eagle, and compared the rim to the Classic Heads. The "old tenor" Capped gold never got to circulate very much, but if it had, it would have fared very well in circulation. There was not much a rim to protect the devices. Peale's influence, after his fact finding trip to Europe, was a real boon to the U.S. coinage system.