1896-S 25C MS(PCGS#5615)

June 2026 Showcase Auction U.S. Coins

Auctioneer

Stack's Bowers

Lot Number

2111

Grade

MS65

Price

36,600

Lot Description

This is one of the three key issues to the Barber quarter series with a tiny mintage of 188,039 pieces for the year. Gems are highly prized and extremely rare. The offered coin has a provenance going back to the year it was struck. Exceptional russet-gold iridescent toning is seen on both sides. The depth of the strike is fantastic and the entire obverse is sharp, as is the reverse, right down to the eagle's talons. The surfaces are splendid with minimal signs of bag handling, and have obviously had careful storage for over a century. A prize that simply cannot be duplicated today.<p>Produced in an era when collecting mintmarked coinage was just beginning to gain momentum (Augustus G. Heaton's <em>Treatise on Coinage of the United States Branch Mints</em> was published in 1893), most 1896-S quarters slipped quietly into circulation and remained there until worn out or lost. While low grade examples appear fairly regularly, problem free VF, EF and AU coins are highly elusive. Even rarer are Mint State survivors. The present Gem offers high grade and outstanding eye appeal and will be just right for an advanced collection of Barber coinage.<p>Numismatists have identified two reverse dies for this issue. This coin was struck from the first reverse with the mintmark centered between the letters R in QUARTER and D in DOLLAR.