Auction of "scandalous" rare coin to help raise up to $1 million for cancer research

Dallas, Texas: A rare quarter-dollar, with a design so scandalous it was abruptly changed just weeks after going into circulation in 1916, will help raise as much as $1 million for cancer research next month.

"The controversial quarter depicts a semi-nude 'Miss Liberty,' according to Greg Rohan of Heritage Numismatic Auctions, Inc., of Dallas, Texas, the country's largest rare coin auction house. "Only 52,000 of them were made, and this is the best surviving example. It is expected to sell for between $50,000 and $100,000."

The coin is part of the finest known collection of Standing Liberty quarters that originally were issued from 1916 to 1930. The collection, consisting of 38 pristine condition coins, was assembled by an anonymous east coast collector described by Rohan as "president of the largest pharmaceutical technology transfer company specializing in cancer treatment."

All proceeds from the January 5 - 7, 2000 sale of these coins in Orlando, Florida will be donated to The National Foundation for Cancer Research. The total amount of the donation is expected to be between $500,000 and $1 million.

When the controversial quarter-dollar designed by renown sculptor Hermon Atkins MacNeil was first released into circulation in December 1916, critics claimed it was immoral and obscene.

"The goddess Liberty is standing, holding an olive branch in her right hand and a shield in the left, symbolically indicating America was ready for peace or war prior to entering World War One. Liberty's right breast is exposed, and the naughty design immediately created a scandal when the coin was placed into circulation late in 1916," said Rohan.

"In 1917, the quarter's infamous design was modified to portray a more modest Miss Liberty. In fact, the Mint covered Liberty's chest with chain-mail armor," explained Rohan.

Other consignments in the Heritage auction include the most extensive collection of Civil War-era emergency money and an extensive collection of gold coins.

"During the turbulent times of the Civil War, postage stamps were used for money. Collector Gene Wolfe of Chicago spent nearly 30 years researching postage currency coins and paper money, and specially-struck silver coins produced during the war. Some of the items were previously part of the fabled collection of Egypt's King Farouk," explained Rohan.

The January auction also includes the famous gold coin collection of Chicago philanthropist Joseph J. Abbell. He assembled a complete "type" set of American gold coins representing every design and denomination ever issued from 1795 to the 1930s.

Among them is an 1880 $4 gold piece, known by collectors as a "Stella," one of only four known specimens with Liberty's hair in a coil coiffure. That coin is expected to sell for $100,000 to $200,000, according to Rohan.

The January 5 - 7 Heritage auction will be conducted in the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, Florida as part of the annual Florida United Numismatists convention. It will be the first major rare coin auction of the new year, with bids accepted in person, by mail and online.

For additional information, contact Heritage Numismatic Auctions, Inc. at (800) 872-6467 x 222 or on the Internet at www.heritagecoin.com.