Bela Lyon Pratt was an American sculptor and coin designer whose work bridged the artistic and numismatic worlds at the turn of the 20th century. Pratt was best known for designing the $2.50 Indian Head Gold Quarter Eagle and $5 Half Hagle coins, contributing to President Theodore Roosevelt’s campaign to elevate American art and symbolism in national currency.
Biography of Bela Lyon Pratt
On Dec. 11, 1867, Sarah Victoria Whittlesey Pratt gave birth to her fourth child, Bela Lyon Pratt. When Bela was five, she recorded this memory on a slip of notepaper:
“One day after Bela had passed his 5th birthday our family physician chanced to be at our house. On the stand in my mother’s room stood some tiny models of a cat, dog, horse, a deer and other animals. The doctor picked them up and exclaimed: ‘Who made these?’ My mother rather impatiently said ‘Bela pinches them out of beeswax. I can’t keep a bit of wax in my workbasket. He always plays with it.’
‘Why! Don’t you realize that child is a genius? He is a born sculptor!’ announced the physician, greatly to my mother’s astonishment.
I distinctly remember hearing her discussing the matter with my father in the evening. Thereafter, Bela was allowed to ‘play’ with beeswax to his great delight. As soon as he could use a knife, he began to carve various objects, which were much admired by his playmates.”
Pratt’s formal artistic journey began at the Yale University School of Fine Arts and continued at the Art Students League of New York. In New York, he learned from Augustus Saint-Gaudens, who would become one of his most significant mentors. Following a brief period working in Saint-Gaudens’ private studio, Pratt continued studying at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris. The international exposure helped hone his classical style and instilled a rigorous technical discipline.
Career in Sculpture
Bela Lyon Pratt returned to the United States in 1892 and created two large sculptural groups, The Genius of Navigation and The Genius of Discovery, for the World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago. He also contributed to the Pan-American Exposition in Buffalo in 1901. In this period, he produced a wide range of sculptural works in a style marked by technical precision, naturalism, and a distinctly American sensibility.
The Indian Head Gold Quarter Eagle and Half Eagle
Pratt’s contributions to coin design are significant. Following Saint-Gaudens’ redesign of the $10 Gold Eagle and $20 Gold Double Eagle coins, Pratt was commissioned in 1908 to design the Indian Head Quarter Gold Eagle and Half Eagle.
Design and Style of the Indian Quarter Eagle and Half Eagle
Incuse Technique
Pratt employed an incuse (sunken) relief technique, which Dr. William Sturgis Bigelow suggested to him. One benefit of this incuse style of coin design was that the sunken design protected the design elements of the coin from excessive wear, which added to the coin’s circulation durability.
Incuse Design
Obverse: Indian Head Design
Features a Native American chief with a full headdress, surrounded by stars.
Reverse: Standing Eagle Design
Depicts a proud and vigilant eagle, symbolizing national strength and freedom. The Eagle is perched upon a fasces.
Inscriptions and Details
The obverse inscriptions read LIBERTY and provide the year of minting.
The reverse reads UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, E PLURIBUS UNUM, and the denomination (“2 1/2 DOLLARS” or “FIVE DOLLARS”).
Physical Characteristics
| Coin | Weight | Diameter | Composition | Edge |
| $2.50 | 4.18g | 18 mm | 90% Gold, 10% Copper | Reeded |
| $5.00 | 8.36g | 21.6 mm | 90% Gold, 10% Copper | Reeded |
Innovation in Minting: The Incuse Technique
One of the most innovative aspects of Pratt’s coinage was the use of incuse relief, where the design is sunken into the surface rather than raised above it. The approach was inspired by ancient coinage and advocated by Dr. William Sturgis Bigelow. While controversial, the technique represented a practical evolution in coin design, balancing artistry with functionality.
Reception and Legacy
The public’s reaction to the coin’s release in 1908 was skeptical. These were the first and only coins struck by the U.S. Mint with recessed designs, and some resistance from the American public was logical, but several criticisms bordered on the absurd. Some opponents of the coins argued that the incuse design prevented them from stacking and that the indentations would collect germs and bacteria. Despite this, the unique design contributed to the coin’s popularity, and the Gold $2.50 Indian Quarter Eagle was commonly given as a Christmas gift throughout the years of its issue.
Pratt’s Indian Head coins were unlike anything else in U.S. circulation, and their technical and aesthetic innovations remain influential today. The incuse technique, once a source of critique, is now seen as a bold and thoughtful innovation. His sculptures, meanwhile, continue to inspire reflection and admiration in public spaces across the country. Through innovation, education, and artistic integrity, Pratt carved a legacy that bridges history, art, and numismatics.
While his Gold Quarter Eagle and Gold Half Eagle designs were initially met with resistance due to their unusual aesthetics, they came to be appreciated by American numismatists and collectors. Today, the incuse designs are highly regarded, especially in higher grades, where they can sell for thousands of dollars.
