1848 Quarter Eagle (1848 $2.50) Cal, PCGS AU55. Bright mint luster and original surfaces characterize this rare California 1848 Quarter Eagle. Just a touch of wear on the highest points of the design keeps this 1848 Quarter Eagle coin, which looks like a 58, from a mint state grade. The strike is average with some central weakness on the obverse and at the leg feathers on the reverse. In 1848, Secretary of War William Marcy received 230 ounces of gold from Colonel R.B. Mason, the Military Governor of California. Mint Director Robert Patterson was told by Marcy to coin the gold not used for medals for Generals Zachary Taylor and Winfield Scott, into quarter eagles and mark them indicating they were made from California gold. As a result, 1,389 quarter eagles were made. Each is specially marked on the reverse with the abbreviation CAL. above the eagle. A hand punch was used to add the letters rather than an addition to a working die.

Despite the fact that the coin was not custom designed to mark the event, many numismatists consider the 1848 CAL. to be the United States first commemorative coin. It commemorates the first shipment of gold from California to the United States Mint, and one could argue that it is a separate subtype within the quarter eagle series.

Christian Gobrechts quarter eagle was produced without substantial modification from 1840 to 1907, the longest span in any United States coinage series. It uses the Coronet design which shows Liberty in profile facing left, her hair tied tightly in beads, except for two curls one down the back of her neck and the other on the side below her ear, with the word LIBERTY inscribed on the coronet. She is surrounded by thirteen stars, and the date is below the truncation. Dentils are around the periphery of both sides. The reverse shows a heraldic eagle facing left holding arrows and olive branch it its talons. The inscription UNITED STATES OF AMERICA arcs around it, interrupted by the wing tips, and the denomination 2 D. is below. The denomination is separated from the legend with dots.

Christian Gobrecht was the Mints third Chief Engraver. He was born in Hanover, Pennsylvania in 1785. His father, a reverend, was a German immigrant. His mother, Elizabeth Sands was a descendent of the early settlers of Plymouth Colony. In 1818 Gobrecht married Mary Hewes. After an apprenticeship, Gobrecht became an engraver of clockworks in Baltimore. Later, in Philadelphia, he joined a banknote engraving firm. He invented a machine that enabled one to convert a three-dimensional medal into an illustration. His first work for the United States Mint was in 1826 when he made dies as an assistant to William Kneass. When Kneass was unable to continue working because of a stroke, Gobrecht did all the die and pattern work. He became Chief Engraver in 1840 and served in that position until his death in 1844. Famous for his Liberty Seated dollar obverse, which was used for all denominations of silver coinage, he was responsible for also designing the Liberty Head motif that was used on several coins including the gold quarter eagle.

Authentication is strongly recommended for this coin because many forgeries exist that were made by punching CAL. into the 1848 regular issue. (All USRCI coins are authenticated by one of the major grading services.)

The 1848 CAL. is rare in all grades with an original mintage of 1,389. In its population report PCGS shows 67 certified in all grades. In AU55 there are 5 with 28 better.