1916 Proof Quarter Pattern - J-1989

Coin Details

Auction Record

$312,000 PR65 01-07-2004 Heritage Auctions

Description

A Standing Liberty quarter pattern cataloged as J-1989, representing the final entry in the 1916 quarter pattern sequence. This pattern may document a late-stage design variant, an alternative composition, or a die state that was evaluated near the end of the design finalization process. MacNeil's Standing Liberty design was the product of the same competitive process that produced Weinman's Mercury dime and Walking Liberty half dollar: three invited sculptors submitted designs for all three denominations, with the Commission of Fine Arts selecting the winning entries. MacNeil won only the quarter commission (Weinman won both the dime and half dollar), but his design was among the most technically ambitious of the three. The full-figure Liberty standing in an architectural gateway, combined with the eagle in flight on the reverse, created a composition with exceptional depth and movement for a coin of 24.3 millimeters in diameter. The eagle in flight was particularly innovative: previous American quarter reverses had depicted perched eagles, and MacNeil's soaring eagle brought a new dynamism to the denomination. J-1989 completes the pattern record for this landmark design.

Rarity Notes

R-7 to R-8 (Extremely Rare). Terminal entries in the quarter pattern sequence are among the scarcest.

Cross References

Judd J-1989, Pollock P-2181