1876 USA Quarter Poor

1876 USA Quarter Poor

Although the United States Quarter was authorized in 1792, the first issue wasn't first minted in 1796. The first design featured a portrait of Liberty with flowing hair, known as the "Draped Bust" design. Elsewhere in the world a twenty cent piece was more common (and, indeed, the US did have a very short lived twenty cent piece), but, it was decided upon to do quarter dollars, as often a Spanish dollar would be broken up into eight wedge-shaped segments (hence pieces of eight), and would be called a "bit". A common nickname for the quarter was "two bits" - as in "two bits of eight".

Obverse: Seated Liberty looking over her shoulder, with a cap on a stick and a shield, 13 stars representing the 13 colonies around, and the date below.
Reverse: An eagle holding arrows and an olive branch in its talons, banner with the country's motto above, "QUAR. DOL." below and country name around. The mintmark can be found between the eagle and the denomination.

Specifications:
Engraver: Christian Gobrecht
Composition: 0.900 silver, 0.100 copper
Weight: 6.25 g
Diameter: 24.3 mm
Edge: Reeded
Die Axis: ↑ ↓
Mint: Philadelphia, USA
Mintage: 17,816,000