By Jack Riley
An intriguing counterfeit 1920 Standing Liberty Quarter was recently posted to eBay and sparked this article. Pictured below is the Bay example with highlighted repeating marks found on this “family.” The “speared wing,” if you will, is a major pickup for this as well as the lump above “C.”
This “family” shares a common reverse and mixes the obverse of various dates and types including Type 1 and Type 2 obverse designs as well as common and rare dates. Virtually every date of the series has been found linked to this family.
The reverse design of the Standing Liberty quarter changed in mid-1917. The initial design, minted in 1916 and part of 1917, featured Liberty with a bare breast and a low-flying eagle. The redesigned reverse, starting mid-1917, showed the eagle higher and more centered, with three stars below and five on each side.
A 1921 example was previously shared in a Facebook group which reviewed mixed reviews on the coin. Once again 3 common markers show on the reverse.
While the first two examples could be deceiving to collectors, these next two should not be! A 1919 with a Type1 obverse and a poor attempt at a 1916 SLQ.
This is becoming detrimental as the counterfeits are pouring into the “constitutional silver” and can be much more difficult to discern than series that are cataloged by die marriages. This also serves as a good reminder to be diligent on any purchases online as you only have the photos provided and the words of the seller to go by.
Consider this seller showing a 1916 obverse with a latter 1917 reverse (three bottom stars):
Note that the seller is using “HeritCoin, an AI-powered app that helps users identify and value coins. So much for accuracy. But great for scammers.
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