Stack’s Bowers
Galleries to Auction Rare Mint State 1808 Quarter Eagle in Baltimore
By
Jim Matthews
Senior
Numismatist and Consignment Director, U.S. Coins
The quarter eagle of 1808 is recognized today as a great
rarity, a landmark among major design types. Just 2,710 quarter eagles were
made of this date, the first (and last) year that John Reich’s Capped Bust to left
design was used on this denomination, creating a one year only type required
for a complete type set of United States coins. As chance
would have it, in the following years, no depositors requested that their
bullion be coined into quarter eagles. Because of this, no quarter eagles were
struck at the Philadelphia Mint until 1821 and this later mintage featured the
modified Capped Head design, which had been in use on the gold half eagle since
1813. Adding to this issue’s scarcity is the fact that as time went on, the
price of gold rose to such an extent that these quarter eagles struck from 1796
through 1834 became worth more in scrap metal value than face value. In 1834
the weight of the quarter eagle and the half eagle were reduced so that melting
them was no longer profitable and these gold denominations could circulate once
more.
John Reich, a German immigrant, had been recommended to Mint
Director Elias Boudinot in 1801 by President Thomas Jefferson who had seen
examples of the engraver’s work. He was employed at the Philadelphia Mint on a
part-time basis through 1807, when then director Robert Patterson recommended
that Reich be given a more permanent position, partly to replace the aging Chief
Engraver Robert Scot. In a March 25, 1807 letter to Jefferson encouraging more
permanent employment for Reich, Patterson states, “the beauty of our coins
would be greatly improved by the assistance of [Reich’s] masterful hand.”
Indeed, in 1807 Reich prepared new dies for the half dollar and half eagle
which featured the Capped Bust to Left motif. These seemed to find favor and
the design would be adapted the next year on quarter eagles and subsequently in
modified form on other denominations as well.
The
example offered as part of the Stack’s Bowers Galleries official auction of the
Whitman Coin and Collectibles Baltimore Expo in November is graded MS-61 by
NGC. The bright yellow gold surfaces are lustrous and attractive, with just
traces of copper toning on the high points and a swath through the lower left
reverse. There are only minimal signs of bag handling and typical adjustment
marks on the obverse rim. The strike is reasonably sharp for this rare type,
with full separation of Liberty’s curls and just a trace of softness on the
uppermost areas and on the dentils in areas opposite the adjustment marks. The
usual light die crack can be seen from the cap to stars on the right.
Because
of its extreme rarity and also its position in a gold series in which just
about all dates and mints are rare, the 1808 quarter eagle is not as famous as
it should be, although it is well enough known to specialists and advanced type
collectors. Of the original mintage, 125 to 150 are estimated to exist today,
the majority of which are found in circulated grades. Mint State examples are
virtually unobtainable and demand always far outstrips the number of coins that
come on the market.
More
information about this quarter eagle rarity and the other important coins,
tokens, medals and paper money in the Stack’s Bowers Galleries November
Baltimore auction will be available in our upcoming catalog, as well as on our
website www.stacksbowers.com.
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