Heritage World Coin Auctions
FUN Signature US Coin Sale 1251 4-6 & 8-9 Jan 2017
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Seated Quarters
1860-S 25C MS61 PCGS. CAC. Even though 56,000 quarters were produced of this issue, the story is the same for it as it is for many other S-mint issues from the 1850s through the 1870s: high attrition. Demand in the West for hard currency severely limited the survival rate of high-grade examples. Many S-mint issues from this period do not have even a single remaining coin in Mint State, and we can only speculate about the circumstances surrounding the preservation of this 1860-S representative. In the November 1990 edition of The Gobrecht Journal, Jim Gray pointed out, "the most underappreciated and undervalued of all Seated coins is the 1860-S quarter, particularly in higher grades."
After 30 years and multiple millions of coins certified, this piece still remains the sole 1860-S quarter encapsulated as Mint State by PCGS. The surfaces are even, light gray with soft, frosted mint luster visible beneath the toning. There are a few tiny abrasions on each side, as one would expect from an MS61 coin, the most obvious and easily usable for pedigree purposes being a vertical mark to the left of the date and a similar tick on Liberty's thigh. Several stars are a trifle soft, but the overall striking quality is satisfactory.
It is noteworthy that the two most prominent collectors of Seated coinage of the past generation have owned this coin: Jim Gray and Eugene H. Gardner. Its status as the finest known of the issue stands unrivaled, and the next owner will find it an important addition to a high-end Seated quarter collection.
Ex: Public Auction (Stack's, 9/1989), lot 1126; Jim Gray Collection (Bowers and Merena, 7/2004), lot 2240; Eugene H. Gardner Collection, Part II (Heritage, 10/2014, as MS61 NGC with CAC approval), lot 98372.
1860-S 25C MS61 PCGS. CAC. Even though 56,000 quarters were produced of this issue, the story is the same for it as it is for many other S-mint issues from the 1850s through the 1870s: high attrition. Demand in the West for hard currency severely limited the survival rate of high-grade examples. Many S-mint issues from this period do not have even a single remaining coin in Mint State, and we can only speculate about the circumstances surrounding the preservation of this 1860-S representative. In the November 1990 edition of The Gobrecht Journal, Jim Gray pointed out, "the most underappreciated and undervalued of all Seated coins is the 1860-S quarter, particularly in higher grades."
After 30 years and multiple millions of coins certified, this piece still remains the sole 1860-S quarter encapsulated as Mint State by PCGS. The surfaces are even, light gray with soft, frosted mint luster visible beneath the toning. There are a few tiny abrasions on each side, as one would expect from an MS61 coin, the most obvious and easily usable for pedigree purposes being a vertical mark to the left of the date and a similar tick on Liberty's thigh. Several stars are a trifle soft, but the overall striking quality is satisfactory.
It is noteworthy that the two most prominent collectors of Seated coinage of the past generation have owned this coin: Jim Gray and Eugene H. Gardner. Its status as the finest known of the issue stands unrivaled, and the next owner will find it an important addition to a high-end Seated quarter collection.
Ex: Public Auction (Stack's, 9/1989), lot 1126; Jim Gray Collection (Bowers and Merena, 7/2004), lot 2240; Eugene H. Gardner Collection, Part II (Heritage, 10/2014, as MS61 NGC with CAC approval), lot 98372.