01
Camel Rock
The projecting upper profile is the central landmark; layered edges articulate its mass.
Shawnee
National Forest
A rock profile. A much longer story.
Camel Rock occupies the silver field; a small hawk opens the sky above it. The forest is here, but rock gives this design its structure.
Read the reverse ⟶DenominationQuarter dollar
Weight5 troy ounces
Fineness99.9% silver
Diameter76.2 mm
Mint markNone · bullion
IssuerUnited States Mint
Reverse design anatomy
Read the edge
before the texture
The Mint identifies Camel Rock, foreground vegetation and a red-tailed hawk. Broad rock surfaces contrast with the finer marks of foliage and feathers.
The following close reading describes visible forms. It does not assign undocumented intentions to the artists.
02
The hawk
The Mint names the species. Its spread wings sit apart from the heavy rock below.
03
Vegetation
Small branching forms interrupt the lower rock surface. No individual tree species is assigned.
The place behind the coin
Sand became stone.
Erosion changed its edge.
The Forest Service describes the Garden of the Gods formations as sandstone shaped by uplift and erosion. Camel Rock belongs to that landscape in southern Illinois.
Reading the profile first connects the coin to a real geological process. The bird and plants place that slow-changing rock beside living forms; this contrast is an editorial observation, not a statement of artist intent.
- SandstoneMaterial described by the Forest Service
- 1939National forest established · Mint record
- 2016Issue #31
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 2016 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 design: Justin Kunz; sculpt: Jim Licaretz.
- 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.