The 1916 and early 1917 Standing Liberty Quarters depict Miss Liberty with her right breast completely exposed. Today they would refer to this as a “wardrobe malfunction”. She certainly didn’t intend to show herself like that. What happened to modesty?
My niche is one ounce silver and gold coins. I sometimes write about half ounce rare American coins, but rarely go below that. I find the 1916 and 1917 type I Standing Liberty quarters so unique, that I am inspired to include this variety. It was so out-of-character for the US to produce a coin such as this for circulation.
The design was quickly revised because of public outcry. Other countries in Europe displayed some nudity on their silver coins at that time, but America wasn’t ready for it. Art Nouveau was gaining popularity and it accepted the nude female figure as a legitimate art form. Victorian conservatism was being replaced by the Art Nouveau style and thought.
A design competition was held, and several top sculptors were invited to submit designs for possible use on the new quarters. Hermon McNeil’s design was finally chosen. It depicted a pretty Miss Liberty standing between two large pedestals, holding an olive branch in her right hand, and a shield in her left. She wears a flowing gown that slips off her right shoulder to expose her breast.
The dies for the 1916 Standing Liberty Quarter were ready for production by July of 1916. But production didn’t begin until the last half of December that year. The delay is never explained on record, so it can only be surmised.
The 1916 production of Standing Liberty Quarters consisted of 52,000 pieces. All were produced at the Philadelphia Mint, and all left the mint by December 29, 1916. They seemed to get stuck in distribution during January of 1917.
Meanwhile, all three mints began striking the 1917 Standing Liberty Quarters in January, and sent them out for distribution as well. On January 17th of 1917, the bare-breasted Standing Liberty Quarter finally made her debut.
Public outcry was immediate and loud. Religious leaders used words like “obscene” and “filthy” to describe this lovely, silver, now rare American coin. Citizens’ groups lobbied Congress to have the disgusting coin recalled. Congress was pretty much forced to submit to the objection. The bare-breasted Liberty Quarters soon disappeared from circulation.
McNeil was ordered to modify his beautiful conception. His solution was simple and ingenious. He modestly clothed Miss Liberty nearly to the neck in a chain maille type pattern dress. She maintained the braless look however, which must have been OK for the time.
During the 15 year run of the Standing Liberty quarter, two changes were made to the design, resulting in three type coins. I just described the first. The second took place in 1925, because the dates were wearing off too quickly. The design was re-cut so that the date was recessed, rather than raised.
High grade bare-breasted (Type I) Standing Liberty Quarters dated 1916, surprisingly aren’t as rare as you might expect. Since it was the first year of a new coin type, many people stored some away as a curiosity.
Their immediate recall ensured that even more were stashed away without seeing circulation. AU and BU 1916 Standing Liberty Quarters are fairly common despite their small mintage.
As an investment, this has been a volatile coin. Because more specimens exist than its low mintage would suggest, the asking price is often inflated over the equally scarce mid-issue, non-controversial types.
Type I Standing Liberty quarter dollar coins are not a good candidate for pure investors. If you find a high quality specimen for a low enough price, go ahead and buy it. But, if you’re looking for an example just to complete your collection, or want to own one because of its historical value, buy the best you can afford and make sure it’s been graded by PCGS or NGC.
[ad_2]Source by Paul St. Julien
