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747

Lot 747 - 1918-S Liberty Standing 25C. 8 over 7. PCGS MS66

Currency:USD Category:Everything Else / Other Start Price:87,500.00 USD Estimated At:175,000.00 - 185,000.00 USD
Lot 747 - 1918-S Liberty Standing 25C. 8 over 7. PCGS MS66
1918-S Liberty Standing Quarter Dollar. 8 over 7. One of the finest graded of this classic rarity, this one has delightfully original surfaces with a sharp eagle and lettering on the reverse. Flashy luster and well struck, with most of the head present, but not quite enough to qualify as full. We always have to make a memo to bidders that this key overdate is nearly impossible to find with a full head. The surfaces remain quite clean and exquisite, with just a couple of microscopic marks away from an even finer designation!

While the first-year low mintage 1916 is traditionally regarded as the key date in the Standing Liberty set, examples of this classic rarity must have been saved in large numbers, since Gems are usually available, even if at a formidable price. The 1918/7-S, on the contrary, has not been certified above the MS64 level with a Full Head. A few Gems are known without Full Head definition, the present gleaming MS66 among them. It is not surprising, then, that Gems are very rare for the 1918/7-S, since the variety was not reported until 1937, long after most had entered circulation. The regular 1918-S has a high production of over 11 million pieces. Those collectors not distracted by World War I or an influenza epidemic may have set aside a Mint State example or two, but these were almost never from the overdate die. Similar to the overdate Buffalo Nickel struck the same year, the variety was caused when two obverse hubs with different dates were used to create an obverse working die. Technically, the variety should be designated as 1918/1917-S, since the entire date was hubbed in both instances (it is in fact listed as such in Breen's Encyclopedia).

This highly lustrous Gem has grand eye appeal for all the world to appreciate. The surfaces are beautifully preserved, as we said, and improve the beauty of the issue manifold. The underlying luster is fresh, the overlay of warm russet to amber toning gives it grand eye-appeal! Curiously, in the motto, the spelling takes the archaic Roman road as: E PLVRIBVS VNVM. The all-important date is bold; the center of Liberty's head and the shield rivets near her waist possess typical definition. The opportunity to acquire a Gem MS66 1918/7-S Quarter does not regularly arrive, and it may be years until a Gem of equal quality appears at auction. (#5726)
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