2011-S Glacier, Silver Proof

Barbara Fox's reverse for the 2011-S Glacier Silver Proof renders a mountain-goat climbing a rocky outcropping in the foreground with Mount Reynolds rising behind, the same composition struck for the clad proof and circulation strikes but rendered on a 90% silver planchet at 6.25 grams. The issue is the second of the 2011 silver proof slate, struck at San Francisco under the .900 fine standard the U.S. Mint had used for silver proof quarters since 1992. The Mint reported 524,681 silver proof sets sold for 2011, a measurable decline from the 585,401 figure for 2010 and the production anchor on every silver proof entry that year. The wildlife-and-summit composition follows the formula established by the 2010 Yellowstone reverse (bison and geyser) and remains one of the better-recognized 2011 designs.

Authentication on the issue starts with weight: 6.25 grams for silver, 5.67 grams for clad, a half-gram difference any precision scale resolves in a non-destructive check. The reeded edge runs solid silver around the perimeter without the reddish copper-core line a clad strike shows at an angle. PCGS, the Professional Coin Grading Service, and NGC, the Numismatic Guaranty Company, label the slab insert with Silver or the S/Ag abbreviation alongside the proof designation. Cameo (CAM) and Deep Cameo (DCAM) are the two contrast tiers, with DCAM the default outcome because the dies are chemically etched before each press run. The wool texture on the goat's coat and the device-to-field boundary along the mountain ridgeline are the strike diagnostic points, with the foreground figure carrying more relief than the surrounding rock face.

The collector market positions the issue as a 2011 silver-set component priced against the silver-content floor, with PR69-DCAM examples a modest premium over the 0.1808 ounce silver-weight value and PR70-DCAM examples a tier above. Single-design demand on Glacier runs above the year's more abstract landscapes because the wildlife-and-summit composition reads instantly to non-specialist eyes. Silver proof set sales for 2011 fell roughly 60,000 sets below the 2010 figure, leaving the issue with a thinner print run than the inaugural ATB silver group while pricing remains within the modern proof market's modest range. For the broader story of the ATB Silver Proof program and the series' production arc, see the Washington ATB series history.