LOT #3181 |
Current Bid: $26,000
1796 $2 1/2 No Stars on Obverse, BD-2, R.4, MS60 NGC....
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Description
1796 BD-2 No Stars Quarter Eagle, MS60
First Issue of the Denomination
One-Year Type; Just 963 Minted
1796 $2 1/2 No Stars on Obverse, BD-2, R.4, MS60 NGC.
White-gold surfaces contain slight mirroring, particularly on the
reverse, as is expected for a coin with such a low mintage. The
dentils on both sides, as well as the feathers on the eagle's wing
are razor sharp, although slight weakness is present on the eagle's
neck and in the center of the obverse portrait. Luster is more
prominent than the MS60 grade would suggest, especially on the
reverse. No notable abrasions exist on that side, while the obverse
contains a planchet flaw through the portrait, as struck, though
the fields are similarly devoid of notable contact marks.While the quarter eagle is typically overlooked in the pantheon of Early American numismatics, its inaugural 1796 No Stars issue introduced an important development to American coinage - the Heraldic Eagle reverse. While the dollar got the Draped Bust design first overall, beginning with the October 3, 1795 delivery, according to Harry Salyards, the quarter eagle was the first to get the Heraldic Eagle reverse with the initial September 21, 1796 delivery. From there, it spread to the half eagle and eagle in 1797 (the 1795-dated Heraldic Eagle half eagles were minted in calendar year 1797; minting coins with leftover dies from previous years was a common practice in the early mint) and reached the silver denominations beginning in 1798.
The aforementioned low mintage does not crack the four digits, at just 963 examples. This figure originates from the sum of the 66 quarter eagles from the aforementioned September 21 delivery and the 897 quarter eagles delivered on December 8. The subsequent 1796 With Stars mintage figure of 432 stems from the January 14, 1797 delivery, and the 1797 and 1798 mintages figures of 427 and 1,094 were derived from the remaining 1797 deliveries and the 1798-1799 deliveries, respectively. After the 1798 issues, quarter eagles were not made again until 1802, so it is safe to assume that the mintage of 1796-1798 quarter eagles are self-contained in the 1796-1799 deliveries.
The relative rarities of these issues, with an allowance for higher survival rates for the 1796 issues due to their first year of issue status, generally support this mintage categorization. Bass-Dannreuther (2006) provides the following rarity evaluations for these issues: 104-131 for 1796 No Stars, 40-50 for 1796 With Stars, 20-25 for 1797, and 70-85 for 1798. Bowers' estimates in his 2022 reference on the denomination are very close to these. The 1796 No Stars has a slightly higher surviving population than the 1798 with a similar mintage, attributable to the greater survival rate. The 1796 With Stars has a population of 40-50% the size with a mintage also about 30-40% of the size, again owing to the former's greater survivorship. The only outlier is the 1797, with a population only half the size of the 1796 With Stars despite a similar mintage, a margin too large to be explained by differential survival rates alone. However, Bowers notes that this issue is a sleeper that is underrated in modern times due to a lack of high grade examples that drive attention from investors, further supporting the pattern of higher survival rates of 1796 quarter eagles due to examples saved at the time of issue.
While this issue is more common in high grade than the subsequent issues, this "commonness" is only true in the context of the series and its three-digit mintage figures. Demand still far exceeds supply. We have only traced a dozen examples in MS62 or finer, and our and Stacks' auction archives reveal an additional three MS61 examples. Adding in this pieces reaches a total of just 16 Mint State examples of this issue (with the potential for a few more from population figures, which could also stem from resubmissions). This makes this issue, which is sought by all types of collectors as a one-year type, both rare and in high-demand.
This quarter eagle has a multitude of important features that makes it an important issue in the history of American coinage - the first issue of a new denomination, a one-year type, an ultra-low mintage rarity, and the debut of the Heraldic Eagle reverse design. The presently offered example of this issue provides a multitude of excellent features, including clean, slightly prooflike surfaces, a sharp strike, and excellent color. This example would constitute the centerpiece of any quarter eagle collection, including both type sets and advanced die marriage sets alike.
Ex: Chicago ANA Auction (Stack's Bowers, 8/2011), lot 7592.
Coin Index Numbers: (NGC ID# 25F2, Variety PCGS# 45501, Base PCGS# 7645, Greysheet# 213446)
Weight: 4.37 grams
Metal: 91.67% Gold, 8.33% Copper
Note for clients in the European Union: This lot is considered by the European Union to be “investment gold”. We believe that it meets the criteria established in Article 344(1), point (2) of Council Directive 2006/112/EC and thus should be exempt from import VAT regardless of the selling price. Any questions or concerns about VAT should be addressed to your accountant or local tax authority.
Auction Info
2026 January 14 - 17 FUN US Coins Signature® Auction #1390 (go to Auction Home page)
Proxy Bidding Ends
January
14th
Wednesday
5:50 pm CT
Auction Dates
January
14th-17th
Wednesday-Saturday
Proxy Bidding Time Remaining
12 Days
10h 34m 18s
Bids + Registered Phone Bidders: 14
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Buyer's Premium per Lot:
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This lot is in: 2 -
Signature® Floor Session - Platinum Session - II (Live Floor, Live Phone, Mail, Fax, Internet, and Heritage Live):
(Lots 3177-3389) - 6:00 PM Central Time, Wednesday, January 14, 2026.
[Proxy bidding ends ten minutes prior to the session start time. Live Proxy bidding on Heritage Live now starts within 2 hours of when the auction opens for proxy bidding and continues through the live session.]
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Heritage Auctions
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Dallas, TX 75261
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