1876 Quarter Eagle Patterns

About This Coin

Struck at the Philadelphia Mint during America's centennial year, the 1876 Quarter Eagle Patterns from the Metric & Stella Patterns (1874-1879) series applied the metric coinage program's design concepts to the $2.50 gold denomination. These pieces emerged from the same congressional initiative that produced the famous four-dollar Stella, testing whether European metric standards could be incorporated into American coinage. The obverse features experimental designs from the Stella program, including Liberty portraits with flowing hair or coiled hair — the two competing visions crafted by Charles E. Barber and George T. Morgan. The reverse incorporates the distinctive five-pointed star containing the denomination FOUR DOL. characteristic of the broader program. The 1876 date adds centennial significance to these already noteworthy patterns, as the nation's hundredth birthday celebrations created heightened public interest in American coinage. For collectors, the quarter eagle patterns demonstrate how Barber and Morgan's competing design philosophies translated to the smaller gold denomination, providing a study in how artistic vision adapts to different physical formats while maintaining visual coherence.