1853-D $2.50 (1853-D Quarter Eagle) NGC MS61. Here is a rare, pre-Civil War, Southern branch mint, mint state 1853-D Quarter Eagle that comes with the famous Pittman provenance and is tied for second finest at both NGC and PCGS. The coin has a strike which is far above average, especially so on the obverse. Usually seen with weakness above Libertys ear, below LIBERTY, and on the dentils, this piece exhibits a strong strike in all of these areas. The reverse shows a strong strike on the eagles neck feathers, and the shield. Smoldering mint luster is seen in protected areas of both sides of the coin. No wear is found, as expected for a mint state coin, and the surfaces are, for the grade, original, clean, and free of individual distractions worthy of mention. The coin comes in an old NGC holder.

The discovery of gold in the early 1800s led to the establishment of two of the Southern branch Mints, Charlotte North Carolina and Dahlonega Georgia. In 1835 an act of Congress mandated that these two branch mints would coin only gold. The New Orleans Mint also opened to handle gold from Mexico. In 1838 the first Dahlonega gold coins were made, and they were the Classic Head Half Eagle type. Because of the local alloys high silver content, Dahlonega gold coins often have a green-gold cast. Dahlonega gold coins are also often weakly struck on irregular planchets. They are eagerly sought by collectors and investors because of their low mintages and rarity. Modern D mint coins should not be confused with Dahlonega coins. Today a coin bearing the D mintmark was minted in Denver, which began production in 1906.

Christian Gobrecht became the third Chief Engraver at the United States Mint. He was born in Hanover, Pennsylvania in 1785. His father was a German immigrant, and his mother traced her ancestry to the early settlers of Plymouth, Massachusetts. Gobrecht married Mary Hewes in 1818. One of his early positions was as an engraver of clocks in Baltimore. Later he went to Philadelphia where he became a banknote engraver. He invented a machine that allowed one to convert a three-dimensional medal into an illustration. This was an excellent job and Gobrecht was understandably reluctant to work for the Mint for less money than he was making at the engraving firm. In order to persuade him to leave, Mint Director Robert Patterson prevailed upon Chief Engraver William Kneass, who had had a stroke, to take less in salary so more money would be available to hire Gobrecht on a permanent basis. In 1826 Gobrecht did his first work for the Mint as an assistant to Kneass. After Kneass stroke, Gobrecht did all the die and pattern work for the Mint. He became Chief Engraver in 1840 and served until his death in 1844. He was famous for his Liberty Seated motif which was used for all denominations of sliver coinage including the half dime, dime, quarter dollar, half dollar and sliver dollar. He also designed the Liberty Head gold eagle, a motif that was also used on the half-cent, the cent, the gold quarter eagle, and the gold half eagle.

The 1853-D quarter eagle had an original mintage of 3,178 pieces, making it fundamentally rare in all conditions; less than 100 are known to exist today. In its population report, NGC shows 4 in MS61 with 3 better. At PCGS there are 4 in MS61 with 2 better. These numbers do not account for crossovers and resubmissions.