1828 Quarter Error List with Pictures
A quarter showing traces of 50 cents sounds like the wrong coin. On the 1828 25/50 variety, the mistake is in the stamped numbers, and an exceptional example brought $352,500 in November 2013.
This 1828 quarter error list also covers raised cracks, small lumps, recut stars, and a missing piece of the blank. Whole-coin estimates span $150–$360,000, from worn examples to an exceptional top-grade denomination error.
Read on to separate these marks and find the right places to check.
1. 1828 Capped Bust Quarter Die Cracks and Raised Chips
Fine raised lines beside the eagle’s ribbon belong to the Browning-1 variety. Some run from ED in UNITED toward the ribbon and from the ribbon toward AME.
Later examples show another line rising from the lower left edge through U and two leaf tips. These ridges formed as silver entered cracks in the die, the steel stamping tool.
Browning-2 has different marks: a spur at an arrowhead and a lump between the S of STATES and the ribbon’s S. Small recesses in its tool produced these raised details, without creating a large rim-connected break.
Estimated Value
Allow roughly $150–$5,000 for recognizable examples from worn condition through attractive, lightly worn pieces. This estimates the whole quarter, with the tool variety and preservation both affecting the comparison.
A long, clear crack is easier to show than a faint line lost among scratches. The Browning-2 lumps also help identify a scarcer variety, so compare like examples rather than pricing the amount of extra silver.
Cleaning and edge damage can reduce appeal.
How to Identify
Choose the route that fits what you see. For a thin line, inspect the ribbon and ED with a magnifier, then follow the ridge toward the surrounding letters.
On the lower left, a later Browning-1 crack crosses U and the leaf tips without touching the wing. Different stages need not show every listed crack.
For a lump or spur, turn instead to the arrowheads and the gap between the two S letters. These are the Browning-2 checks.
Tilt the coin so each mark casts a shadow. Raised silver following these particular paths is useful evidence; a sunken groove or an isolated edge dent is not the same feature.
2. 1828 Capped Bust Quarter Repunched Stars
Two stars to Liberty’s right can carry tiny extra outlines. Browning’s description identifies slight repunching at the tenth and eleventh stars on the front tool used for Browning-1.
A star punch was pressed into the tool more than once, leaving a little of an earlier position. Coins made from that tool repeat the small mark.
This is a local change to the star design, not proof that the whole coin was struck twice. The same front tool was paired with several backs, so examine the eagle side separately before naming the complete variety.
Estimated Value
A practical whole-coin estimate is $150–$5,000 for worn through attractive, lightly worn quarters with recognizable star details. Much of that value comes from the early quarter itself and its condition.
The tiny repunching does not command the record price of the denomination error by itself. That other variety requires the matching 25/50 reverse.
Sharp star centers, original surfaces, and clear photographs make an example easier to compare than one with flattened or scratched stars.
How to Identify
Count the stars before looking for doubling. Start at the lower left and work around Liberty, placing stars ten and eleven on her right.
A 10× magnifier and soft side lighting should reveal more than a dark outline in a photograph. Look for a small additional raised edge that belongs to the star itself.
Compare both stars at the same angle, keeping the coin still while moving the light. A shadow will shift, while a real extra outline stays attached to the same point.
Wear can round the star points and hide the smaller details.
Check the two stars against a clear example of the shared front tool; general thickness around every star is not enough.
3. 1828 Capped Bust Quarter Clipped Planchet
A genuine clip leaves part of the coin’s round outline missing because the blank was incomplete before striking. Browning lists a worn Browning-2 example with a Mint clip at four o’clock.
That location is a useful starting point, but the listing does not state the missing portion’s size or exact shape. The coin was described as Very Fine, with moderate wear.
A rounded dent from later circulation is different. An authentic clipped blank should show an edge and nearby design consistent with being struck after the metal was already missing.
Estimated Value
For a confirmed example in circulated condition, estimate $500–$10,000 as a whole-coin range. The upper end would require an especially clear, desirable clip and strong remaining detail.
The historical Very Fine listing establishes an example, not a recent selling price. Its brief description cannot support a precise premium for size.
A small missing section with heavy cleaning belongs in a different comparison from a larger, attractive clip on a problem-free quarter.
How to Identify
Inspect the missing edge from both faces and from the side. Fresh-looking saw marks, a narrow cut, or metal pushed up around a bite suggest later damage.
With a magnifier, examine how the design ends beside the gap and whether the opposite rim is weak. Opposite-rim weakness can help, but its absence alone does not settle the question.
A scale provides another check against the normal 6.74-gram weight, allowing for wear. Use calipers across the intact portion of this roughly 27.5-millimeter quarter, not across the missing section.
The listed example’s four-o’clock gap must have a struck edge, rather than a dent with metal shoved into the neighboring rim.
4. 1828 Capped Bust Quarter 25 over 50 Denomination
Look beneath the eagle at 25 C. Parts of an earlier 50 remain underneath the corrected numbers on the Browning-3 variety.
The worker preparing this tool first entered a half-dollar value, then corrected it to a quarter-dollar value. The same reverse tool had already been used for quarters dated 1822 before returning in 1828.
The resulting coin is still a quarter on a quarter-sized blank. It was not made by striking a half dollar into a smaller coin.
These overlapping digits are why the variety is commonly called 25 over 50, or 25/50.
Estimated Value
The exceptional NGC MS67★ Newman coin sold for $352,500 at Heritage in November 2013. That grade indicates outstanding preservation without circulation wear.
Estimate $1,000–$360,000 across worn identifiable examples through an exceptional top-grade coin. Most worn pieces should not be compared directly with the record specimen.
The corrected value, remaining detail, and surface quality all matter. A strong 25/50 on an ordinary worn quarter does not recreate the record coin’s condition.
How to Identify
The denomination is the quickest place to start. Enlarge 25 C and trace the older strokes beneath both corrected digits, rather than judging one dark patch.
Compare their positions with a clear PCGS 25/50 example. The extra marks should fit the underlying numbers instead of looking like random grooves cut around 25.
Next, check the 1828 date and the full eagle side together. The reverse tool was also used in 1822, so a close-up of the denomination alone cannot establish the year.
Keep both dates and denominations visible when comparing photographs; matching older strokes under the 1828 coin’s 25 identify the correction.
Conclusion
An 1828 quarter can show a tiny extra star outline or a much more obvious correction beneath 25 C. Estimated values stretch from $150–$360,000, but the record end belongs to an exceptional 25/50 coin.
Begin with the feature you can see, then check its matching details. Clear photographs of the denomination, stars, and edge help keep different tool varieties and later damage apart.