Two examples of the 1837 quarter eagle are known in Proof format. The piece shown on this page and sold previously through Stack's Bowers Galleries is the only one any collector could hope to own, as the other piece traces its provenance to the Mint Cabinet and is today in the National Numismatic Collection at the Smithsonian Institution. While other early Proof gold coins are extremely rare, three to five examples are known of some of these delicacies (or even more in some rare circumstances) but this piece is for all intents and purposes unique.

Two die varieties are known of the 1837 quarter eagle. Interestingly, the Proof specimens are both struck from the die which features a long die crack, heavy repunching at star 8 and more modest repunching at star 9, and repunching in the 8 and 7 of the date. The varieties are easily distinguished by the position of star 8, as this one points at a hair curl and the other one points between two hair curls.

Early American gold coins in Proof condition appeal to numismatists on many fronts: their unique beauty, their extreme rarity, their history of ownership by some of our nation’s best known and more storied numismatists. That makes this 1837 Proof Classic Head Quarter Eagle one-of-a-kind.

The example to the left was sold by Stack's Bowers Galleries in the July 2003 Classics Sale, where it realized $241,500.