1908-1929

Designer: Bela Lyon Pratt
Mints: Philadelphia, Denver
Mintmark Location: Reverse on left of arrows
Weight: 4.18 grams
Composition: .900 gold, .100 copper
Diameter: 18mm
Edge Type: Reeded
Interesting Tidbits: This coin has no raised edge and the main devices and legends are incuse.

At the turn of the century, President Theodore Roosevelt thought the existing US coins were ugly and wanted American coins to be as beautiful as the coins of ancient Greece. In late 1905 he asked renowned American sculptor Augustus St. Gaudens to redesign the $10 eagle and $20 double eagle. These coins were introduced in 1907, shortly after St. Gaudens’ death. Roosevelt’s friend, Dr. William S. Bigelow, suggested making coins with devices sunk below the fields, somewhat like some ancient Egyptian coins, and convinced sculptor Bela Lyon Pratt to submit models for the $2½ quarter eagle and $5 half eagle. Pratt’s designs were forwarded to Mint Engraver Charles E. Barber, who spent several months delaying the coin’s progress and modifying the designs.

The first quarter eagles left the Mint in late 1908 and were immediately attacked by critics who complained that the coin’s reverse relief would attract dirt. Despite the complaints, the coin’s design remained unchanged throughout its short life. There was apparently little demand for smaller-denomination gold coins throughout the 1920s and no quarter eagles were made after 1929.

Indian Head quarter eagles were issued annually from 1908 through 1915. At that point, the Mint suspended their production for a decade; when it resumed in 1925, the coins were struck for five more years before the series ended in 1929-one of many victims of that year's Wall Street crash. As the depression took hold, what little gold came into the Mint was used for production of double eagles. With the cessation of gold coinage and the great recall of 1934, the quarter eagle would not return.

With just fifteen different date-and-mint combinations (twelve issues from the Philadelphia Mint and three from Denver), the series is one of the smallest in U.S. coinage, making a complete set attainable for many collectors despite the relatively high cost of buying anything made of gold. Its affordability is enhanced by the fact that only one coin, the 1911-D, is notably scarce; at 55,680, it's the only coin with a mintage of less than 240,000. The Denver mintmark can be found on the reverse, to the left of the arrowheads.

Relatively small numbers of matte proofs were made in every year from 1908 through 1915, but not in the final five years. The flat matte finish of the proofs proved unpopular with collectors of the day, and many remained unsold, to later be melted by the Mint.

Being recessed, the design elements on Indian Head quarter eagles are protected from excessive wear. At the same time, this complicates the grading of these coins, since the patterns of normal wear differ from those of raised-relief coins. Critical areas for detecting traces of wear are the Indian's cheekbone and headdress feathers and the shoulder of the eagle's left wing. Although these coins are relatively plentiful in grades up to Mint State-64, a sharp drop-off occurs above that level and very few examples exist in grades of Mint State-66 and above. Counterfeits of many dates exist, and some are very deceiving. Any questionable piece should be authenticated.

The Indian Head quarter eagle may not be quite as magnificent as the Saint-Gaudens coinage, but it has its fair share of admirers and has long since overcome its early criticism. This series offers the advantage of being perhaps the only series of United States gold coins easily completed. Aside from the 1911-D, all dates in this series are readily available in mint state. They also make for a fun and satisfying collection.