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| Poor 1: 1853 Arrows & Rays |
United States
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Silver 25C 1853 ARROWS & RAYS
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PCGS PR 1
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CAC
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View Coin
| Fair 2: 1854-O Arrows, Huge O |
United States
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Silver 25C 1854 O ARROWS HUGE O
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PCGS FA 2
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FS-501, Huge O. CAC
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View Coin
| AG3: 1891-O |
United States
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Silver 25C 1891 O
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PCGS AG 3
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CAC. A hard-to-find coin: PCGS Coinfacts indicate roughly 500 survivors & R6 in all grades.
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| G4: 1853-O/Horizontal O |
United States
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Silver 25C 1853 O/HOR O ARR & RAYS FS-501
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PCGS G 4
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CAC.
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View Coin
| G6: 1858-S |
United States
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Silver 25C 1858 S No Motto
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PCGS G 6
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CAC: Only 19 approved 1858-S quarters in all grades.
Tough coin: PCGS currently estimates only 175 survivors in all grades (out of a mintage of 121,000), and rates this coin as R7.2.
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View Coin
| VG8: 1858 |
United States
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Silver 25C 1858 No Motto
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NGC VG 8
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CAC
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View Coin
| VG10 #1: 1868-S Briggs 1-A |
United States
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Silver 25C 1868 S Briggs 1-A
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PCGS VG 10
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CAC. A challenging date: 96,000 minted, but only 350 survivors in all grades. R6.3 (PCGS Coinfacts)
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View Coin
| VG10 #2: 1876 |
United States
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Silver 25C 1876
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PCGS VG 10
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This coin caught my eye on Ebay. The photos in the listing weren't great but I found myself going back to them again and again. Common date; uncommon example.
What a great look! Dark charcoal-gray fields, with lighter devices. My photos can't do this coin justice, and show it to be more light and brown than it is in hand. The Reverse, to me, is solid for the grade. The Obverse has a nice cameo look. I also note the die crack on the Reverse. Going counterclockwise, it runs along the rim, just above the dentils, from the tip of the U (United) all the way through the denomination and around to the I (America). Very cool. You can see a lot, but not quite all, of the crack in my photo.
Purchased this coin in its holder, and then submitted it to CAC. It passed: currently the only VG10 example with the Green Bean.
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View Coin
| F12 #1: 1861 Type 2 Obverse & Type 1 Reverse |
United States
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Silver 25C 1861 Type 2/Type 1
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PCGS F 12
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CAC.
This is a very nice F12, for sure. It has an even brown patina, with lighter central devices. Tilting under light reveals gold accents on the devices and shades of blue-violet in the fields. I love the look but, unfortunately, my camera can't do it justice.
But what makes this coin really interesting is that it's an example of a very rare die pairing. It combines the new Type 2 obverse introduced in 1859 with the old Type 1 reverse that began to be phased out in 1859. The Type 2 obverse adds shield lines above the E in Liberty, and Lady Liberty gets a redesigned head, face, and hair. On the Type 1 reverse the eagle's eye is concave and the last A in America sits lower than the other letters in the legend.
Briggs noted in 1991 that this die pairing is rare. More recently, Greg Johnson (a noted Seated Quarter specialist) refers to this pairing as "a very rare variety of a very common date." 1861 saw the last Philadelphia quarters minted with the old Type 1 reverse, and the 1861 Type 2/Type 1 quarter is indeed tough to find. I felt fortunate to purchase a PCGS AG3 example a few years ago. When an F12 CAC example of this coin appeared in a recent GFRC auction, attributed as such by Gerry Fortin and his auction cataloguer, I just had to have it!
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View Coin
| F12 #2: 1888 |
United States
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Silver 25C 1888 With Motto
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PCGS F 12
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CAC. Scarce coin: mintage of only 10,001.
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View Coin
| F15 #1: 1853/4 Arrows & Rays |
United States
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Silver 25C 1853 ARROWS & RAYS 1853/4 FS-1301
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PCGS F 15
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CAC. A key diagnostic is the doubled base of the arrow on the right (as you face the coin), which shows clearly in this photo.
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View Coin
| F15 #2: 1873-S Arrows |
United States
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Silver 25C 1873 S ARROWS
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PCGS F 15
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CAC. Mintage of 156,000. Among the 73-74 arrows coins, only the 73CC has a lower mintage.
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View Coin
| VF20: 1840-O with Drapery |
United States
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Silver 25C 1840 O DRAPERY
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PCGS VF 20
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CAC
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View Coin
| VF25 #1: 1838 No Drapery, Briggs 1-A |
United States
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Silver 25C 1838 SEATED No Drapery, Briggs 1-A
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PCGS VF 25
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CAC
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View Coin
| VF25 #2: 1844-O |
United States
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Silver 25C 1844 O
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PCGS VF 25
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CAC
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View Coin
| VF25 #3: 1845 Briggs 2-B |
United States
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Silver 25C 1845 Briggs 2-B
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PCGS VF 25
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CAC
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View Coin
| VF25 #4; 1877-CC Briggs 1-A |
United States
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Silver 25C 1877 CC Briggs 1-A
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PCGS VF 25
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CAC. An incredible VF25. The 77 date digits appear to be repunched: an FS-301? (Informal attribution by Gerry Fortin.)
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| VF30 #1: 1839 No Drapery |
United States
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Silver 25C 1839
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PCGS VF 30
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No Drapery; CAC.
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| VF30 #2: 1840-O No Drapery |
United States
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Silver 25C 1840 O NO DRAPERY MM Left
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PCGS VF 30
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CAC
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View Coin
| VF30 #3: 1853 Arrows & Rays |
United States
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Silver 25C 1853 ARROWS & RAYS
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PCGS VF 30
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CAC
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View Coin
| VF30 #4: 1879 |
United States
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Silver 25C 1879 With Motto
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PCGS VF 30
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CAC
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View Coin
| VF35 #1: 1890 |
United States
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Silver 25C 1890 With Motto
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PCGS VF 35
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CAC
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View Coin
| XF40 #1: 1862 |
United States
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Silver 25C 1862
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PCGS XF 40
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CAC. Consistent medium-gray toning on both sides.
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| XF40 #2: 1877 |
United States
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Silver 25C 1877
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PCGS XF 40
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CAC. This coin has a light brown/gray patina on both sides that I summarize as "sandy." Rotating it under light reveals subtle gold accents that enhance the look. I couldn't capture the coin's appearance in my photos. Indeed, the photos published by the seller - a far more experienced coin photographer than I - don't do the coin justice, either. This is one of those cases where the coin simply looks far better in hand than in photos.
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| XF40 #3: 1877-S/Horizontal S |
United States
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Silver 25C 1877 S/HORIZ S FS-501
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PCGS XF 40
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CAC
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View Coin
| XF45 #1: 1847 DDR & RPD |
United States
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Silver 25C 1847/47 DDR FS-801
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PCGS XF 45
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CAC. Briggs 2-A
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View Coin
| XF45 #2: 1891-S |
United States
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Silver 25C 1891 S With Motto
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NGC XF 45
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CAC. Great eye appeal. It always jumps out of the album at me. Definitely has "The Look."
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| AU50: 1891 |
United States
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25C 1891
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PCGS AU 50
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CAC. I can't do justice to this coin in my photos. It's well-balanced, lighter than in my photos, and has what I call that sandy-silver look that I've noticed on more than a few of my Seated CAC holdings (across all denominations). Indeed, when I viewed the coin in hand for the first time I immediately said to myself "I know that look!" (The seller's photos couldn't do it justice, either.)
The eye appeal is augmented by an even, subtle, light golden tone that grows on the viewer. All told, the reverse photo is closer to the look of this coin in hand.
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View Coin
| AU53 #1: 1842 LDS Lightning Bolt |
United States
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Silver 25C 1843 Lightning Bolt
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PCGS AU 53
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CAC: pop of 1 in grade. Purchased at a 2021 Gerry Fortin Rare Coins Auction.
Auction Catalog Description reads as follows: "Late Die State Lightning Bolt, Frosty Luster, Light Silver-Gray Patina, Choice Original, Tenafly Collection: ... the "Lightning Bolt" description fits this coin well. A reverse die crack extends from the rim [between the I and C in America], across the right wing, and forms an internal cud. Surfaces are 100% original and choice with ample residual luster. A light silver gray patina covers both obverse and reverse. Obverse strike is complete with nicely round stars and complete facial details and hair curls. The reverse die is degraded with multiple die cracks but still exhibits an effective strike with distinct claw joints .... CAC reports 28 pieces in all grades...."
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View Coin
| AU53 #2: 1854 with Arrows |
United States
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Silver 25C 1854 ARROWS
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PCGS AU 53
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CAC. A striking coin. My photos don't do it justice, especially with respect to the scroll on the obverse (Liberty is sharp) and the toning on both sides. The seller's description of the latter is accurate: "Surfaces are toned a crusty brown with embedded gold. Under a bright light, golden brown luster is available on both sides."
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View Coin
| AU55: 1877-S |
United States
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Silver 25C 1877 S
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PCGS AU 55
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CAC.
Wow, this is a beautiful coin. The steely fields and sharp strike draw me in every time. Unfortunately, my camera can't do it justice. I purchased this at a recent GFRC Auction, and the description provided in the auction catalog says it better than I can: "Substantial luster remains on this popular San Francisco piece, with especially strong reverse cartwheel for an AU example. Grey centers host hints of gold patina at the rims, and the eye appeal is excellent. Nicely-struck detail throughout, with sharp stars. Marks are minimal as expected, with only a few lines extending from the left arm."
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View Coin
| AU58: 1876 |
United States
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Silver 25C 1876
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PCGS AU 58
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CAC
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