1914 Indian Head Quarter Eagle, NGC PF67. With a mintage of just 142 pieces (sometimes mentioned to have been as low as 117, perhaps indicating the number of coins sold), anyone can see that the 1914 Indian Quarter eagle is a rare issue in Proof grades. Because of the unpopularity of the so-called Matte Proof Finish at the time of issue sales of these Proof coins was low, and few people cared to save the pieces for later generations of collectors who would appreciate them much more. By the time this happened, however, production had halted for a long time and collectors now only have a small number of pieces to choose from, seldom in a grade such as Proof-67 we presently offer.

Whatever the true mintage has been, the number of pieces known is believed to be around 60 pieces. As is often the case with rare coins, many coins have been resubmitted to the grading services on multiple occasions. For example, NGC has graded a total of 12 1914 Proof Indian Quarter Eagles in Proof-67, with just 4 finer. Our own research has found out that perhaps no more than 6 or 7 pieces exist in that grade, and it is also possible that some of the higher grades had previously been graded Proof-67 and thus are duplicated as well. Although it would be hard to confirm this, it is not hard to imagine how rare a 1914 Proof Quarter Eagle truly is.

Mintage of the Proof Indian Eagles dropped to just 100 pieces in 1915, and production of Proof gold coins was abandoned after that. The experiment of changing the finishes of the gold coins had proven to be a failure, and Proofs would not be struck for collectors until 1936. By that time, no gold coinage had completely been abandoned, making this one of the final types of American gold coinage struck in Proof format, except for the modern products of the United States Mint. Paired with a now popular design, with its unique incuse devices, these gold coins have become much more in demand during the last few decades.

The present piece has wonderful green to khaki gold color, and is extremely sharp. No blemishes are distracting enough to be worth mentioning, and the strong characteristics of this particular coin would easily distract from them. The incuse design, unique to this design, is highlighted perfectly by the magnificent strike and eye-appeal of this particular coin. Second to last year of issue, it would be hard to find a better example of this important 20th century Proof gold coin. The granular surfaces are nicely visible in the fields on both sides, and confirm the status of a true matte Proof gold coin. A rare and important offering, this coin is destined for the finest collection of 20th century gold coinage. This coin has been certified by NGC in a new holder.