1841 Quarter Eagle - The first of several Proof-only dates for the quarter eagle denomination, it is believed that no business strike pieces were produced at the Philadelphia Mint in 1841, making every known 1841 Quarter Eagle a Proof. However, this is disputed by some, and the facts do point in the favor of those people.

While the Philadelphia Mint struck Proofs of all quarter eagle issues from 1840-1848, the mintages are never estimated to be higher than five, if that much. Yet, there are as many as fifteen 1841 Quarter Eagles in existence, a high number for a Proof issue.

Only a few of these have been certified as Proofs, while all the others are certified as circulated Proofs. Additionally this also was in a period where Proofs were not struck or sold on a regular basis (which would only commence in the late 1850s).

Regardless of the historical context in which the 1841 Quarter Eagles were struck at the Philadelphia Mint it is one of the most famous issues of the denomination and certainly the rarest. Offerings are extremely infrequent and the supply is small. Those that do appear at public auction or in inventory of dealers sell quickly and at high prices.

As such, the acquisition of an 1841 Quarter Eagle in any grade is an opportunity which will only arise a few times in a collector’s lifetime, and should always be considered when one is to acquire an example of this issue. Nobody knows when the next opportunity will come around!