The Mint Act of 1792, which created the United States Mint, specified that certain design features appear on legal tender coins, including the quarter-dollar.  One side of the coin had to include the year in which it was minted, an image that symbolized liberty and the inscription LIBERTY.  For more than 115 years, liberty was symbolized on the obverse side of the coin by allegorical female figures (Lady Liberty) in the form of a bust or a full-length figure.  The reverse side of the quarter featured an eagle and the inscription UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.