1964 Quarter Pattern - RB-2235, INCO

Coin Details

Description

The final entry in the initial RB-22xx sub-series of INCO experimental quarters, cataloged as RB-2235. This piece represents the culmination of one particular line of alloy investigation within the broader RB-2xxx family. The International Nickel Company's testing program was not conducted in isolation — Battelle Memorial Institute in Columbus, Ohio was simultaneously evaluating alternative compositions under a separate Treasury Department contract, and the Mint's own research metallurgist was conducting parallel studies in Philadelphia. INCO's program was distinguished by its scale and systematic approach, leveraging the company's deep expertise in nickel metallurgy to explore compositions that competitors were less equipped to evaluate. The RB-2235 formulation marks the boundary between the first and second sub-series within the RB-2xxx family: the next group of INCO test strikes jumps to RB-2340, suggesting that compositions between RB-2240 and RB-2335 were either tested but not struck into coin form, or were deemed insufficiently different from existing compositions to warrant physical test strikes. This gap in the numbering sequence is a common feature of the Reed-Brenner catalog and reflects the reality that many compositions were evaluated through laboratory analysis alone, without the expense of producing actual coins.

Rarity Notes

Extremely rare. Estimated population of 1-5 specimens. As the last in its sub-series, this composition may represent the optimized endpoint of one line of testing.

Cross References

RB-2235 (Reed-Brenner), NGC ID: 61881