1885 Proof Quarter Pattern - J-1745

Coin Details

Description

Judd-1745 is the 1885 Seated Liberty quarter dollar pattern struck in aluminum with a reeded edge. The obverse features Christian Gobrecht's Seated Liberty design, with Liberty seated on a rock holding a liberty cap on a pole and leaning on a union shield inscribed LIBERTY, thirteen stars around the periphery, and the date 1885 below. The reverse displays the heraldic eagle with shield, arrows, and olive branch, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA around the top, and QUAR. DOL. at the bottom, with IN GOD WE TRUST on a scroll above the eagle. The Seated Liberty quarter was in its final years by 1885 — it would be produced through 1891 before Charles Barber's new design replaced it in 1892. This aluminum striking captures the classic Gobrecht design in a lightweight, non-precious metal, preserving every detail of the production dies while creating a numismatic novelty of negligible intrinsic value. The contrast between the quarter dollar denomination stamped on the coin and the aluminum metal's near-worthless commodity value epitomizes the nature of these 1885 pattern set pieces. Very few specimens survive, and the piece is considered one of the more elusive entries in the 1885 aluminum set.

Rarity Notes

R-7 to R-8. Extremely rare, with fewer than 5 specimens believed extant.

Cross References

Judd J-1745, Pollock P-1957