1913-S Barber Quarter
Circulation strike struck at the San Francisco Mint · 40,000 made
- Mintage
- 40,000
- 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 1913-S Barber Quarter worth?
Few coins in the series are harder to find. Even a worn 1913-S sells well above face value. The flip side is that counterfeits and altered dates are common, so authentication matters.
What would make yours worth more:
- Uncirculated condition with full original luster
- 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.
Quick answers
- Is the 1913-S Barber Quarter rare?
- Yes. Only 40,000 were made, the lowest of any regular Barber Quarter.
- Is the 1913-S Barber 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 1913 Barber Quarter?
- On the reverse, below the eagle's tail. Philadelphia quarters have no mint mark. On this coin the mark is S, for San Francisco.
- Which San Francisco dates near 1913 are scarcer?
- None. Within five years either side, no San Francisco issue had a smaller mintage than the 1913-S.
- How many 1913-S Barber Quarter coins were made?
- 40,000.
What to check on your 1913-S
- Make sure the mint mark really is an S. A worn or filled mark can be misread. It's what separates your coin from the 1913 (484,000 made).
- 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.
- Proof or circulation strike? A proof has mirror-like fields and frosted design details and was sold to collectors, not released in change. The 1913 Barber Quarter Proof (613 made) is the one to compare with.
- Judge the grade under good light. LIBERTY on the headband is the benchmark: a full, sharp LIBERTY is required for Very Fine and above.
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 mint mark and date have not been tooled or added, or buy one already certified by PCGS or NGC.
The story of the 1913-S
Production at San Francisco fell off a cliff in 1913. Only 40,000 were made, against 708,000 the year before. That drop is why the 1913-S is the one people look for. The next year it made 264,000 (1914-S).
The other mints made far more that year: 1913-D alone came to 1.5 million, roughly 36 for every 1913-S. If you're checking a pile of 1913 coins, the S is the one to look for. In the whole series, its mintage sits closest to the 1901-S (72,664) and the 1896-S (188,039).
Of the 21 Barber Quarters San Francisco struck between 1892 and 1915, this is the scarcest. No Barber Quarter of the 1910s had a smaller run.
New Orleans closes and the 1913-S (1909 to 1916)
New Orleans struck its last quarters in 1909, a run of 712,000 that is scarce today. Philadelphia mintages then dropped, reaching only 484,000 in 1913. The 1913-S, with just 40,000 struck, is the lowest mintage of the series and a major key. The 1914-S, at 264,000, follows it. Both are frequent targets of added mint marks, so a careful look at the S is worthwhile.
The 1911-D and 1912-S, each under one million, are also hard to find well preserved. Production rose again during World War I. Denver struck 6,540,800 quarters in 1916, the year MacNeil's Standing Liberty design replaced Barber's late in the year, which makes the 1916-D the easiest of the final dates. Late Barber quarters stayed in circulation for decades, so many are worn nearly smooth with only partial rims and dates.
Elsewhere in US coinage in 1913
James Earle Fraser's Buffalo nickel replaced the Liberty Head nickel. The bison was redrawn standing on flat ground partway through the year because the raised mound wore away too quickly.
How to recognize it
Charles Barber's Liberty faces right wearing a cap, a laurel wreath and a headband inscribed LIBERTY, with IN GOD WE TRUST above and 13 stars around. The reverse shows a heraldic eagle holding arrows and an olive branch with a ribbon reading E PLURIBUS UNUM. The mint mark sits below the eagle's tail. On worn coins, the letters of LIBERTY are the first thing to fade.
Mintage chart
Specifications
| Series | Barber Quarter (1892–1916) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1913 |
| Mint | San Francisco Mint |
| Mint mark | "S" |
| Strike type | Circulation strike |
| Mintage | 40,000 |
| 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 | Charles E. Barber |
Other 1913 Barber Quarter issues
| Coin | Mintage | Type | Silver |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1913 Barber Quarter | 484,000 | Circulation strike | 0.1808 oz |
| 1913 Barber Quarter Proof | 613 | Proof | 0.1808 oz |
| 1913-D Barber Quarter | 1,450,800 | Circulation strike | 0.1808 oz |
| 1913-S Barber Quarter | 40,000 | Circulation strike | 0.1808 oz |
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.