In 1853 the US reduced the silver weight of its small coins because the California Gold Rush had made silver worth more than its face value, and people were melting the coins. To mark the new lighter coins, the Mint added arrows beside the date and, for 1853 only, rays behind the eagle. This makes the 1853 ‘arrows and rays’ quarter a one-year design.
Castings, Coins
KM-1010 1853 US Seated Liberty Quarter, Arrows and Rays
$12.75
Gold overlay casting pendant. Obverse: Liberty seated on a rock holding a pole with cap and a shield, 13 stars, date 1853 with arrowheads on each side. Reverse: eagle with shield and sunrays behind, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, QUAR. DOL. Inscriptions explained: QUAR. DOL. means ‘quarter dollar’ (25 cents). The arrows by the date mark the reduced silver weight of 1853.
