The quantum-mechanical state of laser radiation near the generation threshold is studied. It is shown that there is a second threshold in laser generation which lies above the first one. At the second threshold coherence appears in laser radiation. In a small region between the two thresholds the laser radiation is in an essentially quantum state, in which the average field strength is close to zero, but the average energy keeps a macroscopic value. Active atoms in superposition states are the sources of coherence in lasers. The laser active medium sufficiently enlarges the characteristic time of coherence.