1806

Of the four Heraldic Eagle dates that close out Robert Scot's Draped Bust quarter design, this one is the workhorse. Philadelphia delivered 206,124 quarter dollars under the 1806 date, a figure that covers both the regular issue and the 1806/5 overdate (catalogued as a separate page on the site). Only the 1807 finale at 220,643 coins beat it. Numismatic researcher A. W. Browning catalogued ten 1806 die marriages, with B-1 reserved for the 1806/5 overdate (catalogued on a separate page) and B-2 through B-10 covering the regular-date marriages, separated by small shifts in date position, dentil spacing, and reverse star and letter placement. A die marriage is a unique pairing of one obverse die with one reverse die, and 1806 is where the series first offers real depth of varieties for the specialist. Strike quality also improved over the rougher 1804 and 1805 production, as the Mint refined planchet preparation and die alignment heading into 1807.

The coin weighs 6.74 grams on a .8924 fine silver planchet (89.24% silver, 10.76% copper), measures 27.5 mm across, and carries a reeded edge applied at striking. Authentication starts with weight: genuine pieces land within a fraction of a gram of standard, while cast counterfeits come in light or heavy and show grainy surface texture under a 10x loupe along with a faint mold seam at the edge. The date area deserves a second look because the 1806/5 overdate commands a premium and fraud runs in both directions. Worn overdates have been tooled to remove the underdigit and pass as a more available regular 1806, and regular 1806 quarters have been tooled in the opposite direction to fabricate fake overdates. A 10x sweep of the digit field will show scratches, raised metal, or tool marks where a clean original surface should be. Safe sourcing means a current PCGS or NGC holder (the two dominant third-party grading services, or TPGs) or a coin pedigreed through Heritage or Stack's Bowers archives.

The site classifies 1806 as a Semi-Key, the correct slot for what is by every objective measure the most available Heraldic Eagle Draped Bust quarter. PCGS estimates roughly 4,750 examples across all grades, the highest figure in the series, and most collectors will see the date in the VG through VF range. Mint State coins exist but turn scarce above MS62; choice pieces at MS63 and finer behave as condition rarities, and the auction record at Heritage and Stack's Bowers reaches into the MS65 and MS66 range. Short parallel file marks on some pieces are adjustment marks, applied at the Mint to bring overweight planchets down to the legal tolerance before striking, and they are original production rather than damage. Soft drapery and weak feather detail on circulated coins are die characteristics, not wear. For collectors building a type set or a date run, this is the practical entry point. For the design lineage and the year-by-year story across the four-year Heraldic run, see the Draped Bust Quarter series history.