2015-S Kisatchie Proof

San Francisco struck 1,177,515 pieces of the 2015-S Kisatchie clad proof for collector distribution inside the year's two proof products, the figure matching the U.S. Mint Clad Proof Set sales total because the five 2015 quarters shipped as a packaged product. Susan Gamble's reverse renders a wild turkey lifting from the longleaf pine understory of Kisatchie National Forest in central Louisiana, the only national forest in the state and a 600,000-acre stretch of pine savanna restored across the twentieth century from heavily logged land. The bird occupies most of the foreground in mid-stride, with the longleaf trunks rising vertically behind it. The issue is the second of five 2015 releases.

Proof finish on the issue is the standard San Francisco style: mirrored fields struck from polished planchets against dies frosted in chemical baths before each press run. Cameo (CAM) and Deep Cameo (DCAM) are the contrast designations PCGS, the Professional Coin Grading Service, and NGC, the Numismatic Guaranty Company, apply on top of the numeric grade, with DCAM the default outcome on the issue rather than an upgrade tier. Grade distribution clusters at PR69-DCAM and PR70-DCAM with population counts in the thousands at the top tier. The diagnostic strike areas are the individual wing feathers and the layered needles on the longleaf pines, both fine-detail elements that flatten under weak press pressure. The clad composition (75% copper-nickel over a pure copper core, 5.67 grams, 24.26 mm) matches every Washington quarter struck since 1965, so counterfeit risk is essentially nil at the price point.

The issue routes through year-set or design-set assembly and trades in the lower price band typical of modern clad proofs. A raw certified PR69-DCAM example moves for a small premium over the cost of breaking up a sealed 2015 Clad Proof Set, and PR70-DCAM examples in NGC or PCGS holders sit at a modestly higher tier above that. The Kisatchie design has drawn topical collector attention from wildlife and southern-forestry buyers, and the active-motion composition is among the more visually energetic ATB reverses, though that interest has not separated pricing meaningfully from its 2015 sister designs. The 1.18 million print run sits between the 2012 ATB proof figures and the steady declines through 2016 and 2017. For the broader story of the ATB proof program and the series' production arc, see the Washington ATB series history.