$2.50 Indian Head Gold MS-64 Coin (Random Year)

The quarter eagle, a U.S. issued gold coin with a $2.50 denomination, was produced over long periods between 1796 and 1929. During those 133 years, this coin went through a large variety of designs - but, here, we are focusing on what has been referred to as the Indian Head quarter eagle. That series - which, for this listing, we will often call the Indian Gold Quarter Eagle - was in production between 1908 and 1929, excluding a gap spanning 1915 to 1925. The First World War, which broke out in 1914, was one of the main factors leading to that lull.

Particularly intriguing however, the post-war coins tend to be more common than the older equivalents. This warrants noting because on our site we classify certain coins as "common date.” In other words, they’ll be displaying dates that are not challenging to find on pieces of the same series. Hence, orders for quarter eagles through the listing here are likely to bring you coins of very particular dates. Among such dates, you can count 1910 pieces, which tend to be quite rare and only in Gem condition. “Gem" is a word often used for a condition deemed MS65 at the lowest.

Other pre-war Indian quarter eagles that could be categorized as common date include those of 1908, 1909, 1912, 1913 and 1915 mintages. However, such quarter eagles from all of the post-war years of production - 1925, 1926, 1927, 1928, and 1929 - are also quite common. The output of Indian Gold Quarter Eagles was especially strong at the Philadelphia Mint. However, the Denver Mint assisted with production in 1911 and 1914 and was solely responsible for making the 1925-dated coins. You can tell if an Indian gold quarter eagle is of Denver origin by looking near the arrowhead on the reverse design. Look for a "D" placed left of that arrowhead.

The arrow in this design is used as a perch by an eagle, but don't be too concerned about the war connotation of that motif. Spreading across the arrowhead and underneath two of the bird's talons is what can be perceived as an olive branch, a historically common motif of peace. The coin's more immediately eye-catching design however is on the flipside, where gorgeous and elaborate headwear sits atop a Native American male. This design came from Bela Lyon Pratt, a sculptor whose inspiration here was a photo of such an Indian. This image, the identity of the Indian in which is not known, was from the sculptor's collection of photographs.

A collection is something that you could benefit from starting - and acquiring a common date Indian gold quarter eagle can be a particularly suitable priority. We state this because, while the Indian Gold Quarter Eagle series as a whole comprises 15 date and mintmark combinations, you can still make the task of collecting all of them easier to begin with by aiming to obtain a common date coin. Each coin's 0.12094-troy-ounce gold content can assist in making an extensive collection of these coins greatly valuable. That collection can form a powerful weapon of a keen investor's arsenal.

Features of the Common Date $2.50 Indian Gold Quarter Eagle MS64:
Likely prospect of a nonexistent mint mark
Edge reeds that circle a symbolic series of stars
Motifs of war and peace shown beside a perched eagle