1984 Washington Quarter - X-301, Squared Quarter

Coin Details

Description

This is the base cupro-nickel-zinc version of the Squared Quarter, the primary catalog entry for the series under the X-301 designation. Struck in a composition that approximates the look and feel of a regular circulating Washington quarter, this was the promotional edition of Andor Orand's political satire piece — of which Krause lists 300. The Squared Quarter was conceived in 1972 by Orand, a German-American artist and pioneering computer artist, as a visual commentary on the impossibility of "squaring the circle" in economic policy. The metaphor became specifically tied to Reaganomics when production began in earnest around 1980. The computer-aided design process was groundbreaking: programmer Manfred Mohr mapped the coordinate system to transform the circular design into a square, and the Medallic Art Company in Danbury, Connecticut struck the pieces in a collar, which the American Numismatic Society describes as the first square piece with sharp corners and serrated edges made that way. The date 1984 was deliberately chosen for its triple resonance: the election year, Reagan's balanced-budget deadline, and Orwell's famous novel. The cupro-nickel-zinc composition gives this version the closest visual resemblance to an actual Washington quarter, making the satirical transformation immediately recognizable.

Cross References

X-301 (Krause Unusual World Coins); related to X-301a through X-301e variants