Indian Head Quarter Eagle — Incuse $2½
Photo credits and rights on the linked coin profile.
United States • 90% gold, 10% alloy metal; historical copper or copper/silver alloy
Issue years: 1908–1915, 1925–1929
Fine gold: 0.120938 troy oz
United States • 2.50 U.S. dollars
Liberty Head Quarter Eagle — $2½
Liberty Head Quarter Eagle — $2½ has nominal fine gold of 0.1209375 troy oz (3.761577 g) at the historical .900 standard. Original Liberty Head quarter eagles contain the historical $2.50 gold standard. The museum representative is a special 1848 CAL-marked issue, not an illustration of a mark found on all coins.
National Numismatic Collection, National Museum of American History; photograph by Jaclyn Nash; paired photograph separated and resized · Image source · Public domain — U.S. federal Smithsonian photograph
National Numismatic Collection, National Museum of American History; photograph by Jaclyn Nash; paired photograph separated and resized · Image source · Public domain — U.S. federal Smithsonian photograph
When a fresh spot bid is available, melt values use fine-metal content × spot bid. CashForCoins guide buying offers use the separately configured percentage for each metal. Selected rare/numismatic coins require an appraisal. Dollar amounts remain unavailable when a fresh quote or buying percentage is missing.
Verified coin specifications
- Country
- United States
- Face denomination
- 2.50 U.S. dollars
- Composition
- 90% gold, 10% alloy metal; historical copper or copper/silver alloy
- Gross weight (grams)
- 4.1795297
- Fineness
- 0.9
- Fine-metal weight (troy oz)
- 0.1209375
- Diameter (mm)
- 18
- Edge
- Reeded
- Mint
- United States Mint; mint facility varies by issue
- Mint mark
- Varies by issue; inspect reference
- Issue years
- 1840–1907
The full dated family includes proofs and branch-mint coins. A date does not establish finish, mint or authenticity.
- Source precision
- Nominal 64.5-grain gross standard; .900 gold; exact modern unit conversion stored to 8 decimals; fine-weight override derived from historical standard. Catalog reference diameter, not a tolerance or authentication threshold.
Calculate this coin’s metal content
Formula: specified fine-metal troy ounces × quantity. Dollar melt value additionally requires an approved current metal price.
Obverse: identify the front
Liberty faces left with LIBERTY on her coronet, stars around her and 1848 below. Her hair gathers at the back. Similar Liberty portraits appear on $5 and $10 gold coins, so turn the coin over before assigning its denomination.
Reverse: identify the back
The eagle spreads its wings behind a shield and holds arrows and a branch. The representative reads 2½ D. and has CAL above the eagle. CAL is an issue-specific feature on this example; an ordinary quarter eagle need not have it.
History and purpose
The Mint dates Gobrecht’s Liberty Head quarter eagle to 1840–1907. Unlike the larger Liberty Head denominations that added a reverse motto in 1866, the quarter-eagle design continued without that motto redesign.
How to identify this variant
Read 2½ D., check the Liberty coronet and compare the nominal 18 mm reference diameter. The fraction describes a $2.50 face denomination, not a half-ounce gold coin. Preserve the exact date and any unusual reverse marking.
Understanding its metal content
The historical standard is 64.5 grains gross at .900 fineness. Multiply 64.5 by .900 and divide by 480 grains per troy ounce: 0.1209375 fine-gold troy oz. Gross metric mass is derived using 0.06479891 g per grain; the displayed 4.17952970 g is a conversion of the nominal standard, not an assay or the measured mass of a worn coin. The remaining 10% is alloy metal; historical legislation permitted copper or a copper/silver alloy.
Dates, varieties and composition changes
The broad series period is 1840–1907. The photographed 1848 CAL detail requires specific attribution and must not be assigned to other dates or ordinary 1848 pieces. Mint marks and die varieties need their own reference evidence.
Melt value versus collector value
A distinctive reverse marking, scarce issue or preserved surface may matter far more than the standard gold calculation. Keep such a coin separate for examination; the photograph does not establish a CAL attribution or grade for a submitted coin.
Authenticity and condition
Compare the fractional denomination, portrait, reverse details, date, reeded edge and nominal physical specifications. A superficially similar $5 Liberty Head has twice this nominal gold content. Do not clean a reverse to expose a suspected marking.
Selling this coin
Describe the denomination explicitly as a $2.50 quarter eagle. Photograph the date, eagle and mint-mark or CAL area in focus. State an unusual marking as observed evidence awaiting review rather than as a confirmed rare variety.
Sources and calculation methodology
The historical Mint report and Coinage Act document nominal gold standards; NIST documents the unit conversions. The fine-weight override retains the result from grains instead of recalculating from a rounded catalog gram weight. Design and date references are separate from photographs. These calculations describe correctly identified genuine coins at standard weight. No approved live gold-price feed is configured, so dollar melt values remain unavailable. A collector assessment and a purchase offer are separate from metal content.
Common questions
Does quarter eagle mean a quarter ounce of gold?
No. It is the historical $2.50 denomination. Its nominal fine gold is 0.1209375 troy oz, distinct from a modern quarter-ounce Gold Eagle.
Should all Liberty Head quarter eagles have CAL?
No. CAL belongs to the special 1848 representative photographed here. It is not a normal mint mark required across the series.
References
- U.S. Mint: Historical gold eagle designs — identity; dates 1840–1907; design Christian Gobrecht coronet Liberty and eagle (checked 2026-10-10)
- Historical Coinage Act of 1873, sections 13–14 — weight 64.5 grains; fineness .900; gold-alloy standard; historical reference, not current legal guidance (checked 2026-10-10)
Issue-year references
Content maintained by CashForCoins. Last substantive record update: 2026-10-10. Report a specification or attribution issue through our contact page.
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