JF (John Flanagan)

How to read it

The quarter took Washington’s portrait in 1932, for the 200th anniversary of his birth. The Mint says the Treasury and the George Washington Bicentennial Commission proposed a competition, and Treasury Secretary Andrew Mellon chose the work of New York sculptor John Flanagan. CoinWeek says Flanagan modelled the portrait on Jean-Antoine Houdon’s bust of Washington and put his initials JF on the right side of the base of the neck. Laura Gardin Fraser’s design lost the competition; the Mint later used it on the 1999 George Washington $5 gold coin.

Also searched as: JF on quarter.

The Flanagan quarter, 1932 to 2021

Flanagan’s portrait is on the silver quarters, the last of them dated 1964, and on the clad quarters dated 1965 and later, including the 1965 quarter. The Bicentennial quarter (1776–1976) kept the portrait with the dual date 1776–1976 and replaced the eagle with Jack Ahr’s drummer (CoinWeek). CoinWeek says the obverse was significantly altered for the 50 State Quarters of 1999 to 2008 and the quarter programs that followed, and that the original Flanagan obverse came back for the last time on the 2021 Washington Crossing the Delaware quarter.

The quarter since 2022

In 2022 the Mint changed the obverse to Laura Gardin Fraser’s portrait of Washington for the American Women Quarters (CoinWeek), so quarters from 2022 on show a different portrait.