$2.50 CLASSIC HEAD GOLD QUARTER EAGLE
The $2.50 Classic Head Gold Quarter Eagle (1834-1839) was the first coin of this denomination to circulate in large numbers. New legislation passed by Congress in 1834 altered the standards for United States gold coins, lowering their weight to a realistic level and permitting them to circulate freely and not be hoarded for their bullion value.
The basic design of the preceding Capped Head Liberty quarter eagle was retained, although it was altered by removing the Liberty’s cap and the motto E PLURIBUS UNUM. These changes readily distinguished the new coins from the old. The usefulness of the remaining gold coins was such that reasonably numbers were coined over the following years. Assisting in this extensive coinage were two modern developments. They are the repayment by France in gold of a debt dating from the Napoleonic period, and the first fruits of America’s domestic gold mines in Georgia and the Carolinas. These mints coined gold pieces exclusively until the end of the Civil War in 1861.
Classic Head quarter eagles survive more or less in proportion to their respective mintages, but the vast majority of extant pieces are circulated to some degree. Most ones have seen grade from Fine to Very Fine and have been cleaned at some time in their history. This also applies to coins which have been damaged. Because Classic Head quarter eagles were used in daily circulation, they are often found with dents and scratches. Again, the severity of such flaws will determine whether a coin is acceptable for third-party grading.
The biggest variable in grading these coins is their sharpness of strike. This type is noted for being indistinct at its centers, and this is particularly noticeable at and directly above Liberty’s ear. Mint state examples of the Classic Head type are somewhat scarce and are concentrated mostly in just two dates, 1834 and 1836. Gem specimens of any date in this series are very rare. Most collectors will have to settle for a coin grading MS-63 or lower, as the supply of superior pieces is so very limited.
Among the relatively small population of mint state specimens, there are some variation in surface quality. Semi-proof like coins may be found for the more accessible dates such as 1834, but most ones seen have frosty surfaces. Examples that have not been cleaned will typically show a bit of orange or russet toning around their peripheries, and this can be quite attractive. The branch mint coins are not made as their Philadelphia Mint counterparts, but mint from the south was turning out better gold coins at this time than they would a few decades later. It’s mostly their low mintages that account for the small population of choice pieces.
While the typical collector is seeking only a single piece to represent the Classic Head quarter eagle type, collecting this series by date and mint is feasible, if one is not too fussy about condition. A few specialists have even begun assembling these coins by varieties, continuing the work started by the late Walter Breen decades ago.