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The special 40% silver 1976 Bicentennial Proof Set is a key addition to any collection of U.S. Mint Coin Sets.  It includes one-time-only Quarter, Half Dollar, and Dollar designs celebrating the 200th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence.  The Dollar‘s reverse shows the Liberty Bell superimposed on the moon.  The Half Dollar depicts Independence Hall in Philadelphia and the Quarter reverse features a Colonial drummer facing left, with a victory torch encircled by thirteen stars at the upper left.

In October of 1973, the Treasury announced an open contest for the selection of suitable designs for the Bicentennial reverses of these coins.  Nearly a thousand entries were submitted.  The Bicentennial coins were the first commemorative Quarter, Half Dollar, and Dollar ever issued for circulation and featured the dual dates “1776-1976” on the obverse.

All coins are Proofs and are in the original U.S. Mint packaging.  The coins were all struck at the San Francisco Mint and bear the “S” mint mark. Each year, the U.S. Mint strikes limited-edition Proof Sets which are the official record of the year’s coin designs.  Proofs are the highest quality coins issued by the U.S. Mint. Each coin is struck at least twice on highly polished coin blanks to bring out the mirrored background and high-relief images.  Proof coins are not released into circulation; they are produced in very small quantities and are made available only to collectors.