1964 Quarter Pattern - Pollock-5205, International Nickel Co.

Coin Details

Auction Record

$5,520 MS63 06-21-2024 Stack's Bowers

Description

The flagship pattern quarter from the International Nickel Company (INCO) clad coinage program, struck in 1964 as the United States faced an acute silver shortage that threatened to make continued production of silver coinage economically unsustainable. The rising price of silver, driven by industrial demand and speculative hoarding, had pushed the bullion value of silver coins dangerously close to their face value, creating the prospect of mass melting. INCO proposed a copper-nickel clad composition — a thin layer of 75% copper / 25% nickel bonded to a pure copper core — that would maintain the electromagnetic signature needed for vending machine acceptance while eliminating the precious metal content. This pattern represents the winning entry in what amounted to a high-stakes competition among metallurgical companies to supply the composition for America's new coinage. INCO's clad sandwich technology was ultimately adopted under the Coinage Act of 1965, and every American dime, quarter, and half dollar struck since that date has used essentially this same composition. P-5205 is thus the direct ancestor of more than 100 billion coins.

Rarity Notes

R-7 to R-8 (Extremely Rare). INCO experimental quarters from the clad coinage testing program are extremely scarce in private hands.

Cross References

Pollock P-5205. Related to the broader 1964-1965 INCO experimental clad series.