1878-S Seated Liberty Quarter
Circulation strike struck at the San Francisco Mint · 140,000 made
- Mintage
- 140,000
- Metal
- 90% silver, 10% copper
- Weight
- 6.25 g
- Diameter
- 24.3 mm
Original illustration. Tap to flip. Not a photograph of the actual coin.
Face value · Metal value · Small premium · Collector premium · Significant rarity. We use bands because prices change daily.
What is an 1878-S Seated Liberty Quarter worth?
Few coins in the series are harder to find. Even a worn 1878-S sells well above face value. The flip side is that counterfeits and altered dates are common, so authentication matters.
What would make yours worth more:
- Uncirculated condition with full original luster
- A die variety or minting error
- Certification by PCGS or NGC, which buyers expect for scarce dates
For market prices, check recent sold results for certified coins in the same grade.
Quick answers
- Is the 1878-S Seated Liberty Quarter rare?
- Yes. Only 140,000 were made, 48th lowest of the 108 regular issues in the series.
- Is the 1878-S Seated Liberty Quarter silver?
- Yes. It's 90% silver, 10% copper and holds 0.1808 troy ounces of pure silver.
- Where is the mint mark on an 1878 Seated Liberty Quarter?
- On the reverse, below the eagle. Philadelphia quarters have no mint mark. On this coin the mark is S, for San Francisco.
- Which San Francisco dates near 1878 are scarcer?
- None. Within five years either side, no San Francisco issue had a smaller mintage than the 1878-S.
- How many 1878-S Seated Liberty Quarter coins were made?
- 140,000.
What to check on your 1878-S
- Make sure the mint mark really is an S. A worn or filled mark can be misread. It's what separates your coin from the 1878-CC (996,000 made).
- Check the date and mint mark under magnification for tooling or added letters. Scarce dates are the ones forgers alter.
- Don't clean it. Cleaning leaves fine scratches and an unnatural shine that collectors avoid.
- Proof or circulation strike? A proof has mirror-like fields and frosted design details and was sold to collectors, not released in change. The 1878 Seated Liberty Quarter Proof (800 made) is the one to compare with.
- Old coins pick up damage over a long life. Look for holes, bends, scratches or signs of cleaning before you judge the grade, because a damaged coin sells for a fraction of a problem-free one.
- Judge the grade under good light. The word LIBERTY on Liberty's shield is the classic test: fully visible in Fine, partly worn in Very Good, gone in Good.
Never clean it. Collectors pay strong premiums for original surfaces and natural toning on a date like this. A cleaned coin can lose half its value or more. Low-mintage dates attract altered and counterfeit coins. Check that the mint mark and date have not been tooled or added, or buy one already certified by PCGS or NGC.
The story of the 1878-S
Production at San Francisco fell off a cliff in 1878. Only 140,000 were made, against 9 million the year before. That drop is why the 1878-S is the one people look for. After that, San Francisco didn't make another until 1888.
The other mints made far more that year: 1878 alone came to 2.3 million, roughly 16 for every 1878-S. If you're checking a pile of 1878 coins, the S is the one to look for. In the whole series, its mintage sits closest to the 1875-CC (140,000) and the 1848 (146,000).
San Francisco struck the Seated Liberty Quarter in 24 issues between 1855 and 1891. By mintage this one lands in the more common half, while the key for that mint is the 1864-S (20,000). Within the 1870s it's 12th smallest of 28, between the 1875-CC (140,000) and the 1873-S, With Arrows (156,000).
Arrows return and the redemption flood (1873 to 1878)
The Coinage Act of 1873 raised the quarter slightly to 6.25 grams. Arrows again flanked the date in 1873 and 1874 to mark the change. Earlier in 1873 Philadelphia struck no-arrow quarters with both closed 3 and open 3 dates. Carson City's 1873-CC without arrows had a reported mintage of 4,000 and only five examples are known.
The Resumption Act of 1875 called for silver coins to replace the small paper notes issued during the Civil War. Quarter output exploded: Philadelphia struck 17.8 million in 1876 and 10.9 million in 1877, while San Francisco and Carson City added millions more. The 1877-S includes an S over horizontal S variety. The 1878-S, with only 140,000 struck, is the scarce date. The 1878-CC was Carson City's last quarter. Coins of 1875 to 1877 are the most common Seated quarters today.
Elsewhere in US coinage in 1878
The Bland-Allison Act required the Treasury to buy millions of dollars' worth of silver each month and coin it into dollars. George T. Morgan's new silver dollar was the result and the twenty-cent piece was struck for the last time, as proofs only.
How to recognize it
Liberty sits on a rock holding a shield inscribed LIBERTY and a pole topped with a liberty cap, with 13 stars around her and the date below. The reverse shows an eagle with QUAR. DOL. below. Arrows beside the date (1853 to 1855 and 1873 to 1874) and rays around the eagle (1853) mark weight changes. The motto IN GOD WE TRUST appears above the eagle from 1866.
Mintage chart
Specifications
| Series | Seated Liberty Quarter (1838–1891) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1878 |
| Mint | San Francisco Mint |
| Mint mark | "S" |
| Strike type | Circulation strike |
| Mintage | 140,000 |
| Face value | 25¢ |
| Composition | 90% silver, 10% copper |
| Weight | 6.25 grams |
| Diameter | 24.3 mm |
| Edge | Reeded |
| Silver content | 0.1808 troy oz (5.625 g) |
| Designer | Christian Gobrecht |
Other 1878 Seated Liberty Quarter issues
| Coin | Mintage | Type | Silver |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1878 Seated Liberty Quarter | 2,260,000 | Circulation strike | 0.1808 oz |
| 1878 Seated Liberty Quarter Proof | 800 | Proof | 0.1808 oz |
| 1878-S Seated Liberty Quarter | 140,000 | Circulation strike | 0.1808 oz |
| 1878-CC Seated Liberty Quarter | 996,000 | Circulation strike | 0.1808 oz |
Mintage: United States quarter mintage figures (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0), compiled from US Mint records and the Guide Book of United States Coins. How we build these pages.