5423

1829 $2 1/2 MS67 PCGS. William Kneass modified the qua

Currency:USD Category:Coins & Paper Money / US Coins Start Price:1.00 USD Estimated At:1.00 - 1,000,000.00 USD
1829 $2 1/2 MS67 PCGS. William Kneass modified the qua
<B>1829<$2 1/2> MS67 PCGS.</B></I> Breen-1, Breen-6132, Bass-3026, R.4. William Kneass modified the quarter eagle design this year, perhaps specifically to mark introduction of the close collar among coins of this denomination. The diameter of the quarter eagles was reduced slightly, to 18.2 mm., and it was this slight reduction that drove the design modification. Smaller stars were employed on the obverse, and the rims were changed to use a beaded border with a high plain rim, an advancement that protected much of the surface of the coin from wear and nicks. The stars and date were each punched into the die by hand, one at a time, thus exhibit slight variance in their relative position. In the date, for example, the digit 8 is slightly low in relation to the other numerals. The three stars at the top, trapped between the top of Liberty's cap and the border, appear to be slightly closer in relation to each other than the remaining stars. The reverse was similarly modified, especially in the treatment of the border. Individual letters in the statutory legend appear to be entered by hand, again, one at a time. This reverse die was only used in 1829, with further modifications for the 1830 reverse, which remained in use through the end of the series.<BR> Today these coins, struck from 1829 through 1834, are among the rarest of U.S. coin types. During this period, just over 25,000 coins were struck. Many if not most were melted, some in the year of issue, as their bullion value was higher than their face value. Beginning after the War of 1812, effectively starting in 1815, and continuing until implementation of the Act of June 28, 1834, gold coins were only available at a premium. Thus, the few collectors of those days could not pull examples from circulation, but had to buy them from bullion dealers.<BR> These were the first quarter eagles struck with the new "close collar"