Theodore Roosevelt left behind a legacy unrivaled by most presidents. One of his
lasting marks was the changes he initiated on U.S. coinage, including the $2.50
Indian Head Quarter Eagle in 1908.
An unusual aspect of the Indian Head Quarter Eagle is that its design elements
are sunk, or incused, into the coin, as opposed to being raised above the
surface as seen on most other coins.
The idea of an incused design was proposed to President Roosevelt by a close
friend, William Sturgis Bigelow. The president approved, assigning Bigelow the
responsibility of procuring a model for both the quarter eagle and half eagle.
Bigelow in turn enlisted the aid of Boston sculptor Bela Lyon Pratt to prepare
the models. Pratt submitted his finished work to the Mint on June 29, 1908.
Pratt’s obverse depicts an Indian wearing a war bonnet. The reverse shows a calm
eagle perched upon a fasces bundle wrapped in an olive branch, symbolizing
military readiness and peace, respectively.
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Indian Head
Quarter Eagle
Specifications |
Diameter: |
Weight: |
Minted: |
Composition: |
Designer |
Edge: |
18.00 mm |
4.18 g |
1908-1929 |
.900
Au .100 Cu |
Bela Lyon Pratt |
Reeded |
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Coin Photos courtesy of
Ira & Larry Goldberg Coins & Collectibles, Inc., Beverly Hills, CA. |
At the time design work began on the Indian Head Quarter Eagle, the motto “IN
GOD WE TRUST” had been removed from U.S. coinage. Roosevelt considered it a
sacrilege to use God’s name on coins, and thus prohibited its use. Stemming from
this, an interesting conversation between Bigelow and Roosevelt took place.
Bigelow wrote:
Is it true that
you are going to meet the criticisms on taking – “In God we Trust”—off the
coins by putting “I know that my Redeemer liveth” on the Treasury notes?.
Before Roosevelt could act,
Congress eliminated the motto controversy by passing a
bill on May 18, 1908, requiring the motto be present on all gold and silver
coinage. A law created in 1955 made the appearance of "IN GOD WE TRUST"
mandatory of all U.S. coinage, a law which is still in effect today.
The Indian Head Quarter Eagle began appearing in circulation in November 1908.
The innovative design stirred up a lot of negative commentary. In an open letter
to President Roosevelt, published in the Feb 1909 edition of The
Numismatist, Samuel H. Chapman vented a diatribe against the new coin:
It was the hope
of every one that when our new coinage appeared we would have one of great
beauty and artistic merit. But the new $5 and $2.50 gold pieces just issued
totally lack these qualities, and not only those of beauty, but actually
miss the practicability to which every effect of beauty in relief has been
sacrificed…. The head of the Indian is without artistic merit, and portrays
an Indian who is emaciated, totally unlike the big, strong Indian chiefs as
seen in real life….. The sunken design, especially the sunken portion of the
neck of the Indian, will be a great receptacle for dirt and conveyor of
disease, and the coin will be the most unhygienic ever issue…. These coins
will be a disgrace to our country as a monument of our present ideas of art
as applied to coinage.
On top of that, a common complaint was that the Indian Head Quarter Eagle did
not stack well, nor did a stack equal the stack height of the same number of its
long-lived
predecessor, the
Coronet Quarter Eagle,
causing trouble for bank tellers trying to do quick counts.
Chapman did not give up easily. His next move was to take his case
directly to the president. Roosevelt's support of the new gold coinage did
not waver, and even if it had, the Pratt design was protected by the law
requiring coin types to remain in service for at least 25 years before being
replaced.
Indian Head Quarter Eagles were made every year from 1908
through 1915, at which time, production was put on hold. In 1925, the
quarter eagle resumed, but ended abruptly in 1929 following the stock market
crash. There may have been a plan to someday mint quarter eagles once more,
but as the Great Depression lingered on, the federal government in 1933
discontinued and demonetized gold coinage. Never again
was there to be United States gold coinage minted for general circulation.
There is only one key date in the Indian Head Quarter Eagle series, and it is
the 1911-D. Its mintage of only 55,680 is by far smallest in the entire
group.
It is a smart idea to insist that any 1911-D Indian Head Quarter Eagle under
consideration for purchase be certified by one of the four leading
grading service companies: PCGS, NGC, ICG, or ANACS. Because the 1911-D is
THE key date coin in the series, it has received a lot of attention from
hucksters who use sub par specimens or outright fakes to swindle eager but
inexperienced collectors. Then again, if you're dealing with a seller of
unquestioned reputation, it is not quite so important that the coin be certified
by one of the "Big Four".
The box below triggers a search of eBay coin auctions to find all 1911-D
Indian Head Quarter Eagles currently for sale.
The left hand side of each "Sales Box" depicts value trends over a very long
period of time for the 1911-D in F-12 condition. The
percent annual increase since 1950 is computed for so you will know how well
it does compared to other coins.
There are usually several 1911-D examples available at any given moment in time.
Be patient and follow the advice in the paragraph directly above. If you
land a properly graded, trouble-free coin, you will be the owner of a key date
U.S. gold coin that will always be in high demand from a solid collector base. The coin pictured
for sale in the right hand side, if any, is not necessarily the same condition coin
as that represented in the value trend analysis on left hand side.
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1911-D
Indian Head QE
Condition: F-12
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Value Trends
1950:
$20.00
1980: $325
1995: $350
2003: $1250
2007: $4000
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% Annual Increase
Since 1950 =
9.74%
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Theodore Roosevelt took a great interest in
United States coinage and played a leading role in reshaping its appearance.
Since the inception of the US Mint in 1792, tradition dictated that no real
person ever be depicted on a coin. With Roosevelt's encouragement,
this changed in 1909 with the adoption of the