1916 Standing Liberty Quarter
Circulation strike struck at the Philadelphia Mint · 52,000 made
- Mintage
- 52,000
- 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 a 1916 Standing Liberty Quarter worth?
This is one of the dates collectors hunt for. A genuine 1916 is valuable in any condition, even well worn. That's exactly why fakes and altered coins turn up so often.
What would make yours worth more:
- Uncirculated condition with full original luster
- A full head on Liberty (FH)
- 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.
With only 52,000 struck, the 1916 is the key to the series and a one-year type with the original Type 1 design.
Quick answers
- Is the 1916 Standing Liberty Quarter rare?
- Yes. Only 52,000 were made, the lowest of any regular Standing Liberty Quarter.
- Is the 1916 Standing 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 a 1916 Standing Liberty Quarter?
- On the obverse, to the left of the date, beside Liberty's foot. Philadelphia quarters have no mint mark.
- Which Philadelphia dates near 1916 are scarcer?
- None. Within five years either side, no Philadelphia issue had a smaller mintage than the 1916.
- How many 1916 Standing Liberty Quarter coins were made?
- 52,000.
What to check on your 1916
- There's no mint mark on this one, so the date and condition are what matter.
- Dates on early Standing Liberty quarters were raised and wore off easily. A clear, full date adds a great deal to a coin from these years.
- 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.
- Judge the grade under good light. Liberty's head is rarely fully struck; "Full Head" (FH) coins command big premiums. The date must be readable for a coin to be worth much.
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 date have not been tooled or added, or buy one already certified by PCGS or NGC.
The story of the 1916
1916 was the first year of the Standing Liberty Quarter. Philadelphia struck 52,000 of them. In 1917 the figure was 8.7 million.
No other mint struck it for circulation that year, so every 1916 you find is from Philadelphia. In the whole series, its mintage sits closest to the 1927-S (396,000) and the 1927-D (976,000).
Of the 15 Standing Liberty Quarters Philadelphia struck between 1916 and 1930, this is the scarcest. No Standing Liberty Quarter of the 1910s had a smaller run.
The bare-breasted Type 1 and the 1917 change (1916 to 1917)
Hermon A. MacNeil's Standing Liberty quarter was struck late in 1916 in a run of only 52,000 pieces and released in January 1917. Liberty steps through a gateway holding a shield and an olive branch with her right breast exposed. The eagle on the reverse flies with no stars beneath it. The 1916 is the key of the series and a frequent target of altered dates.
Type 1 quarters continued into 1917 at all three mints, with more than 8.7 million at Philadelphia. Partway through 1917 the design changed to Type 2: Liberty's chest is covered by chain mail and the reverse eagle is raised, with three stars added below it. Both types of 1917 coins have the mint mark on the obverse, to the left of the date. The raised date was a high point of the design, so many 1917 coins now show a partial date.
Elsewhere in US coinage in 1916
A new generation of silver designs arrived: the Mercury dime, the Standing Liberty quarter and the Walking Liberty half dollar. The first Standing Liberty quarters were struck in very small numbers late in the year.
How to recognize it
Liberty strides through a gateway with a shield raised in one hand and an olive branch in the other. The first coins of 1916 and 1917 show her bare-breasted; later coins cover her in chain mail. The reverse shows an eagle in flight. The date was raised on the step and wore away quickly until it was recessed in 1925. Collectors prize coins with a "full head" of fine detail.
Mintage chart
Specifications
| Series | Standing Liberty Quarter (1916–1930) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1916 |
| Mint | Philadelphia Mint |
| Mint mark | None |
| Strike type | Circulation strike |
| Mintage | 52,000 |
| 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 | Hermon A. MacNeil |
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.