Coinage wenches:

[EZ_E]

Draped Bust design

http://www.oldcoinshop.com/coinhistory/25c-1796.htm

The design of the 1796 quarter dollar had its genesis in the almost universal dislike for the previous coin designs. Earlier copper coinage, such as the Chain cent and Wreath cent, had not been well received by the public, and the Flowing Hair design of the silver coins was widely criticized. To avoid such public embarrassment with the new design, Mint Director Henry DeSaussure engaged renowned portraitist Gilbert Stuart, who supposedly used as his model the prominent Philadelphia socialite Mrs. William Bingham (nee Ann Willing). The likeness of the buxom Mrs. Bingham was first applied to the Draped Bust dollar issued late in 1795.

 

 

But all did not go well in transferring Mrs. Bingham’s likeness into coined form. The rather bland portrait that ended up on the quarters of 1796 did not resemble the beautiful model that Stuart sketched. In fact, Stuart was so disappointed with the results that his connection to these coins was forgotten for almost a hundred years. It was not until 1887, when an article in the American Journal of Numismatics was published, that collectors became acquainted with this fact.

 

 

The failure in transferring Stuart’s sketch into coinage can be laid at the feet of one Robert Scot. Scot was a banknote plate artist who the Mint hired as an engraver. It was later found out he could neither sink a die nor make a device punch. Given Scot’s incompetency as well as that of his assistant, John Eckstein, it is a wonder the coins turned out as well as they did.

 

 

The obverse of the Draped bust quarter features Stuart’s portrait, encircled by 15 stars, with the inscription LIBERTY above the head and the date below. The reverse depicts a small eagle on cushion-like clouds, within a wreath of olive and palm branches. The inscription UNITED STATES OF AMERICA encircles the wreath.

 

 

Another account has it that Robert Scot used a woman who he knew who worked in a pub on the Draped Bust silver dollars of 1778 to 1803.

 

Morgan silver dollar and misc. Pattern coins

http://store.yahoo.com/uspatterns/anwilsildolg.html

Undeniably, Anna Williams was the model for this design. She modeled for George Morgan in 1876 over five sessions. Please, click on link for a more detailed biography.

 

IHC & one dollar gold liberty

...were designed by James Longacre who used his daughter, Sarah, as a model.

 

 

Martha Washington test patterns

...were first struck in 1965 in order to test the new clad composition (which bore the same electrical characteristics as the 90% silver coinage). They are currently being minted in the thousands by the mint but all shall be destroyed.

 

Any others???

[michael]

those martha washington test coins are a huge gamble for the buyers paying tens of thousands of dollars for them

 

and have at best shaky legal ownership issues

 

michael