Standing Liberty Quarter Value Chart: Every Date From 1916 to 1930

The dates to check first

These are the lowest-mintage Standing Liberty quarters struck for circulation. If you're sorting a jar or an inherited collection, pull these dates out before anything else and check the mint mark carefully.

1. 1916 Standing Liberty Quarter: 52,000 made. With only 52,000 struck, the 1916 is the key to the series and a one-year type with the original Type 1 design.
2. 1927-S Standing Liberty Quarter: 396,000 made.
3. 1927-D Standing Liberty Quarter: 976,000 made.
4. 1929-D Standing Liberty Quarter: 1,358,000 made.
5. 1923-S Standing Liberty Quarter: 1,360,000 made.
6. 1917-D Standing Liberty Quarter, Type 1: 1,509,200 made.

Every standing liberty quarter by date and mint

Click any date for its full page: how many were made, the mint mark location, varieties and what to check. Mint marks matter: the same year can be common from one mint and scarce from another.

The series in 3 stages

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.

Raised dates and soft strikes (1918 to 1924)

The Type 2 design kept the date raised on a step at Liberty's feet, where it wore away in circulation. Many Standing Liberty quarters from these years now have partial or missing dates. The 1918/7-S overdate, made when a 1917 die was repunched with an 8, is the major variety of the series and shows a faint 7 inside the 8.

Recessed dates protect the year (1925 to 1930)

In 1925 the Mint cut the date into a recessed area of the step, so it no longer stood above the surface and survived heavy wear. Quarters of 1925 to 1930 therefore usually show full dates even in the lowest grades, which makes them much easier to identify than earlier coins.

Decade by decade

• 1910s: 13 issues, 86 million coins. Scarcest: 1916 (52,000).
• 1920s: 22 issues, 134 million coins. Scarcest: 1927-S (396,000).
• 1930s: 2 issues, 7.2 million coins. Scarcest: 1930-S (1,556,000).

Where to find the mint mark

• 1916 to 1930: On the obverse, to the left of the date, beside Liberty's foot. Philadelphia quarters have no mint mark.

Identifying and grading Standing Liberty quarters

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.

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.

What the value bands mean

• Face value: worth its face in worn condition; only uncirculated coins and varieties carry a premium.
• Metal value: worth its silver content in worn condition.
• Small premium: sells for a little over face or metal value even when worn.
• Collector premium: scarcer than usual, so worn coins sell well above face or metal value.
• Significant rarity: a key date, valuable in any condition and often faked.

Bands describe a coin in ordinary circulated condition. An uncirculated coin with full original luster sits a band or more higher. Recognized varieties can be worth far more than the date itself.