Proof small date quarter sells for $88,000

A proof cameo PR64-graded 1842 small date quarter was the lead lot of a sale at Heritage Auctions, realising $88,125.

The US Coins Signature Auction was held in Dallas on March 6.

Coins wide date
This 1842 small date quarter is one of only six surviving specimens

The lot is one of six known specimens, of which only four are in circulation on the market.

Heritage describes the piece as: "A sparkling near-Gem, the coin is essentially brilliant, save for an occasional whisper of barely discernible light tan-gray patina…

"It is only the presence of a few faint hairlines in the fields that may keep this delightful specimen from attaining Gem status. It is the only 1842 Small Date proof quarter with designated Cameo contrast."

The record for the issue is $282,000, set for the second best known specimen at Heritage in 2014.

Other top lots included an 1802 $1 narrow date dollar, which sold for $64,625.

It's named to distinguish it from the wide date issue, which features substantially greater distance between the numbers of the date.

The present lot is one of the more common die states for the issue but is at the higher end of the survivors in this category, with a grade of MS64.

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