Isabella quarter is without distinction". The "American Journal of Numismatics" had other criticisms of the quarter: Minting of what Barber dubbed "showy quarters" began at the Philadelphia Mint on June 13, 1893, six weeks after the exposition opened. Leech had planned to strike the pieces using polished blanks, or planchets, and workers at that mint handled the coins carefully; unlike the half dollar, surviving specimens display relatively few contact marks from other coins. The first piece struck, along with numbers 400, 1,492, and 1,892, were struck in proof condition and sent to the Lady Managers along with certificates attesting to their status.
Ernests Blanks was born on in Braslava municipality in Valmiera County, Governorate of Livonia, Russian Empire. His parents were leaseholders until the family moved to Riga where he attended school. Starting 1914 he studied history and philosophy at the Shanyavskiy University in Moscow as an unenrolled, external student. He was one of the leaders of the Latvian National Democratic Party (LNDP). In Latvia Ernests Blanks was editor of numerous newspapers and journals, and published papers in even more. Ernests Blanks was honoured with the Three-Star Order (of the 4th class) of Latvia in 1928. In 1945 Ernests Blanks fled in exile to