01
The soldier
A sculpted figure crowns the monument; this is a statue, not a living combatant.
Gettysburg
National Military Park
A battle remembered through a monument.
The 72nd Pennsylvania Infantry Monument stands at the center of this Pennsylvania issue. The coin depicts remembrance, not a battle in progress.
Read the reverse ⟶DenominationQuarter dollar
Weight5 troy ounces
Fineness99.9% silver
Diameter76.2 mm
Mint markNone · bullion
IssuerUnited States Mint
Reverse design anatomy
One monument.
A specific place.
The reverse identifies the 72nd Pennsylvania Infantry Monument on the Union battle line at Cemetery Ridge. The sculpted soldier and masonry pedestal form a single commemorative subject.
The following close reading describes visible forms. It does not assign undocumented intentions to the artists.
02
The pedestal
The broad base fixes the figure within the memorial composition.
03
The place name
GETTYSBURG names the site; 2011 is the coin’s issue year, not the battle year.
The place behind the coin
From battlefield
to public memory
The July 1863 battle ended Robert E. Lee’s second invasion of the North. Preservation began with a citizens’ association in 1864; the battlefield became a federal national military park in 1895.
Today, the NPS interprets monuments alongside terrain, collections and civilian experiences. The later monument on this coin is one way of reading that history, not a complete account of the battle.
- 1863Battle of Gettysburg
- 1864Citizen preservation begins
- 1895Federal military park
Historical context, not a reconstruction. No unverified event photograph is used.
Same design. A larger canvas.
From pocket change
to a statement in silver
The 2011 design also belongs to the circulating quarter. At 76.2 mm, the five-ounce silver coin is 3.14 times wider by diameter—not 3.14 times heavier.
The quarter is a measured outline: an exact authorized quarter photograph is not bound for this page. It is not a miniature bullion image.
Collect with context
Know the design.
Know the object.
Reverse designer Joel Iskowitz · reverse sculptor Phebe Hemphill
- Standard bullion
- No mint mark · Authorized Purchasers · incuse edge weight and fineness.
- Collector five-ounce
- P mint mark · special finish · a separate object. Collector totals are not bullion mintages.