2013-S Great Basin, Silver, Limited Edition Proof Set Proof

Don Everhart's reverse for the 2013 Great Basin design depicts a single bristlecone pine on a high-elevation ridge of Wheeler Peak in eastern Nevada, the species that includes some of the oldest known living organisms on the continent and grows at the timberline within Great Basin National Park. The Limited Edition Set version of the 2013-S Great Basin silver proof is identical to the standard 2013-S Great Basin silver proof: same San Francisco strike, same 90% silver and 10% copper planchet at 6.25 grams under the .900 fine standard, same dies, same 24.26-millimeter reeded edge. The catalog tracks the two as separate entries because the U.S. Mint sold the issue inside two different products. The 2013 Limited Edition Silver Proof Set packaged the five ATB silver quarters with the silver Kennedy half dollar, silver Roosevelt dime, and American Silver Eagle dollar in a black case with a certificate. The 467,961 figure is the 2013 silver-proof distribution anchor.

Authentication on the issue runs two tracks. Silver verification resolves cleanly at 6.25 grams against 5.67 grams for clad, and the reeded edge reads solid silver without the copper-core line a clad strike shows at an angle. PCGS and NGC label the slab with Silver alongside the proof grade and the Cameo or Deep Cameo designation. Cameo (CAM) is moderate frosted-device contrast, and Deep Cameo (DCAM) is the higher tier and the default outcome on the issue. The strike-grading diagnostic is the rendered texture of the bristlecone's gnarled bark and exposed root structure, both fine-relief features that flatten under weak die pressure. Set verification is the second track: an intact Limited Edition Set with original case and certificate is what distinguishes the product context.

Collector pricing sorts the issue by set context. Limited Edition Set sales ran roughly 50,000 to 75,000 across 2013, well below the 467,961 silver-proof anchor, so the value premium attaches to intact original packaging and set completeness rather than to the coin itself. A loose Great Basin quarter shed from a broken set trades at the standard 2013-S Great Basin silver-proof level at PR69-DCAM and PR70-DCAM. Intact Limited Edition Sets and Limited Edition-attributed slabs carry a small premium with set-completion buyers. For the broader story of the ATB Silver Proof program, the 2012-2013 Limited Edition Set, and the series' production arc, see the Washington ATB series history.