1914-S 25C Barber Quarter Dollar PCGS MS64 (CAC)

Here's an attractive choice-plus piece to add to your collection. Barber coinage has had its critics over the years, but frankly such pieces in choice mint state and finer have a beauty and drama that is simply undeniable. PCGS has graded 20 in MS64 with 28 finer. In CAC, there are 4 in MS64 with 8 finer.

Charles E. Barber, the artist-engraver who crafted the dramatic neo-classical design on the coins that are named for him.

Discussing the design found on Barber coinage, numismatic art critic Cornelius Vermeule writes that, "Liberty's cap, incised diadem, and wreath of laurel were designed to echo all the depth and volume of her Olympian countenance. The classical substances are offset, almost literally, by the sharply rectangular dentils of the raised rim and the strength of 13 six-pointed stars. On the [reverse] ... an equal constellation of stars ... is clustered above the eagle's shaggy, craggy profile. On both sides the simple dignity of motto, legend, and denomination binds the pictorialism into a cohesive tondo. The wealth of irregular surfaces and sharp angles is an almost electrifying aesthetic experience. ... specimens [are] a pleasure to contemplate. The sculptor was unsurpassed in the mechanics of creating a durable design of monumental validity."