1895

Philadelphia struck 6,119 business-strike quarter eagles in 1895, the third consecutive year of compressed output from the depression-era Mint Bureau and a figure that places the date in the lower tier of late-Coronet Philadelphia mintages. The 1895 follows the 4,122-piece 1894 and precedes the rebound 1896 at 19,202 coins, sitting structurally as part of the genuine three-year low that defines the mid-1890s for the denomination. By this point the Coronet quarter eagle had been in continuous production since 1840, and discussion was already underway at the Mint about replacement designs for the smaller gold denominations, though Bela Lyon Pratt's incuse Indian Head quarter eagle would not arrive until 1908. The 1895 dies were prepared at Philadelphia from the long-running master hub, and surviving examples generally show the clean, well-defined strike characteristics that define the late Coronet years.

Authentication for the 1895 turns on two specific diagnostic checks. First, the 4.18-gram weight standard is non-negotiable: an authentic Philadelphia quarter eagle of this date must register that figure within tight tolerance, and any noticeable variance flags either a contemporary counterfeit, a plated base-metal reproduction, or a chemically thinned piece. Specific gravity on the genuine 90 percent gold alloy lands near 17.2, separating struck-gold examples from gold-plated copies. Second, the 5 punch on authentic 1895 dies displays a characteristic curve at the upper loop and a clean horizontal arm, and the digit sits in proper alignment relative to the 8 and 9 numerals to its left. Date-changed counterfeits tooled from the more available 1893 or 1894 dies show telltale disturbance around the final position, and genuine 1895 examples never display tool marks or planchet metal disturbance beneath the 5. PCGS slabbed examples are the safer acquisition path for collectors not yet practiced in cold-turkey die identification.

The 1895 carries Key Date status in modern collecting practice, with PCGS Population Report figures running comparably thin to the 1894 and circulated examples trading at meaningful premiums over common-date Coronet quarter eagles. About Uncirculated and finer pieces draw active competition. See the full Liberty Head Quarter Eagle series history.