Dec 31, 2021 | coins, commemorative, dollar, Eagles, quarter, US Mint
Bullion
The year will start with the U.S. Mint shipping 2022 American Silver Eagle bullion coins to authorized resellers. The first bullion coins will likely hit the streets within a week, and graded coins will take about a month to be processed by the grading services. Bullion dealers are selling these coins in advance of receiving inventory.
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2021 American Gold Eagle Type II Reverse
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2022 American Silver Eagle Type II reverse
In 2022, the American Silver Eagles and American Gold Eagles will feature Type II reverses introduced in 2021.
2022 American Platinum Eagle Proof reverse celebrating the First Amendment right of Freedom of Speech
During some press briefings, the U.S. Mint has suggested that American Eagle coins will be released with different finishes. There has been no formal announcement for these options.
Commemorative Coins
The U.S. Mint will release two commemorative coin sets starting at the beginning of January. Both sets will consist of a $5 gold coin, silver dollar, and clad half-dollar.
The Negro Leagues Baseball Commemorative Coin Program celebrates the Negro Baseball League. Money raised from the sale of the coins will be paid to the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum in Kansas City.
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2022 Negro Leagues Baseball Commemorative $5 Gold coin obverse
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2022 Negro Leagues Baseball Commemorative $5 Gold coin reverse
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2022 Negro Leagues Baseball Commemorative Silver Dollar coin obverse
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2022 Negro Leagues Baseball Commemorative Silver Dollar reverse
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2022 Negro Leagues Baseball Commemorative clad half-dollar obverse
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2022 Negro Leagues Baseball Commemorative clad half-dollar reverse
The other commemorative three-coin set will be the National Purple Heart Hall of Honor Commemorative Coin Program. The museum honors the recipients of the oldest medal in the United States. General George Washington created the medal to honor the service of those injured in battle. Money raised by the sale of the coins will benefit the Purple Heart Hall of Honor in New Windsor, New York. As part of the museum’s mission, they are trying to reconstruct records destroyed in a fire several years ago.
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2022 National Purple Heart Hall of Honor Commemorative $5 gold coin obverse
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2022 National Purple Heart Hall of Honor Commemorative $5 gold coin reverse
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2022 National Purple Heart Hall of Honor Commemorative Silver Dollar obverse
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2022 National Purple Heart Hall of Honor Commemorative $5 old coin obverse
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2022 National Purple Heart Hall of Honor Commemorative clad half-dollar obverse
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2022 National Purple Heart Hall of Honor Commemorative clad half-dollar reverse
American Women Quarters Program
The American Women Quarters Program starts in 2022 and will run for four years. Each year will feature the accomplishments and contributions made by women to the nation’s development. In 2022, the five women that will be honored are as follows:
- Maya Angelou – celebrated writer, performer, and social activist
- Dr. Sally Ride – physicist, astronaut, educator, and the first American woman in space
- Wilma Mankiller – first female principal chief of the Cherokee Nation
- Nina Otero-Warren – a leader in New Mexico’s suffrage movement and the first female superintendent of Santa Fe public schools
- Anna May Wong – first Chinese American film star in Hollywood
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2022 Maya Angelou Quarter
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2022 Dr. Sally Ride Quarter
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2022 Wilma Mankiller Quarter
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2022 Nina Otero-Warren Quarter
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2022 Anna May Wong Quarter
2022 Quarter Obverse design by Laura Gardin Fraser
The authorizing law (Public Law 116-330) allows the U.S. Mint to produce the quarters as five-ounce bullion coins, nicknamed the “hockey puck.” The law also allows the U.S. Mint to issue fractional bullion coins. Although some media outlets announced the possibility of a smaller 2.5-ounce puck, the U.S. Mint has not announced new products.
The law allows the U.S. Mint to create five-ounce bullion coins of half-dollars that feature new designs in future programs.
Morgan and Peace Dollars
The U.S. Mint announced that they plan to continue the Morgan and Peace dollar programs in 2022 and beyond. Although the products have not been finalized, there may be different finishes and the production of the coins at other mint facilities.
Dollars
2022 Native American Dollar featuring Ely Samuel Parker
Also continuing is the American Innovation $1 Coin Program that features the contributions from the following states:
- Rhode Island – Reliance yacht naval innovation
- Vermont – Snowboarding
- Kentucky – Bluegrass music
- Tennessee – Tennessee Valley Authority and rural electrification
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2022 Rhode Island Dollar
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2022 Vermont Dollar
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2022 Kentucky Dollar
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2022 Tennessee Dollar
New U.S. Mint Director?
U.S. Mint Director David J. Ryder resigned as of September 30, 2021. After being appointed by two different administrations, Ryder served as the 34th and 39th Director. His confirmation came the position was vacant for over seven years following the resignation of Edmund Moy.
In October, Ventris Gibson was appointed as Deputy Director of the U.S. Mint. Gibson will also serve as Acting Director. By law, Gibson can serve as Acting Director for 180 days. It will be up to the president to appoint a new director for senate confirmation. Given the state of politics, it is fair to question whether the president will make an appointment and if he does, will it be confirmed by the Senate.
Hopefully, the U.S. Mint will have a little better 2022!
All coin images courtesy of the U.S. Mint.
Dec 28, 2021 | auction, coins, commentary, news, shows, US Mint
The last two years have been a wild ride. Anyone who predicted what would have happened should be picking lottery numbers. For the rest of us, the predictable (i.e., the U.S. Mint) became unpredictable. The positives had a lot of negatives and what used to be extraordinary is now ordinary.
Without further ado, here are the top five numismatic stories for 2021.
5. Return of the coins shows
It isn’t easy to have any retrospective of 2021 without acknowledging how COVID-19 has affected the industry. At the beginning of 2021, there were cancelations of shows and other events. As the vaccines became more available and the infection rates declined, the shows returned.
Smaller shows found hotels willing to lease larger rooms to allow the setup of a socially distance bourse. Like the World’s Fair of Money, Larger shows changed to provide for social distancing and limiting contact. Collectors that attended these shows called them a success. Still, the reports may be more emotional satisfaction after a year off.
Coins shows are adapting to an alleged new normal, and collectors are happy to get what they can. While it makes collectors happy, the looming threat of new variants may slow down the shows at the start of 2022.
4. The Positives and Negatives of the U.S. Mint
Ventris Gibson, Acting Director of the U.S. Mint (LinkedIn photograph)
Even with the COVID issues, the U.S. Mint could produce the coins required by law, including the 2021 Morgan and Peace Dollars. Unfortunately, selling these coins revealed collectors’ frustrations with the U.S. Mint.
The U.S. Mint’s online order processing system may work without product release. Still, a major product release causes the system to fail. The product release was a perfect storm of a limited supply and a high collector demand. The result exposed how PFSWeb, the U.S. Mint’s contractor, created a system that could not handle the rush.
The U.S. Mint became more communicative with the numismatic press. During this communication, it was clear that Director David Ryder wanted to talk more about the successes. Unfortunately, the failures of the ordering system overshadowed any success. Ryder resigned as Director effective October 1, 2021.
The e-commerce system at the U.S. Mint is broken and needs to be replaced. Unfortunately, the open communications from the U.S. Mint indicate that they are planning to install a bandaid to cover up the system’s problems. Unless the U.S. Mint and PFSWeb make major changes to their online order system, the issues will continue into 2022.
3. 2021 Morgan and Peace Dollars
Numismatists know that 2021 marked the end of the Morgan Dollar series and the introduction of the Peace Dollar. Morgan Dollars may be the most collected coin in U.S. numismatics. The Peace Dollar was the coin promoted by former ANA President Faran Zerbe with support from the ANA. In 1921, the U.S. Mint produced both coins. What better way to celebrate the centennial is by creating tributes to both coins.
The tribute idea was popular by collectors suggesting that it would be a high-demand product. But the U.S. Mint found a way to destroy the movement. In a series of missteps, the U.S. Mint allowed its lawyers to restrict their ability to do its job. As a result, the U.S. Mint could not purchase enough planchets to satisfy collector demand.
It is difficult to call the program a success given its problems. But the coins were a sellout, and they continue to do well on the secondary market. The U.S. Mint announced that the program will continue in 2022, and hopefully, it will go better than the 2021 releases.
2. Million Dollar Coins No Longer a Surprise
1804 Class I Original Draped Bust dollar, PCGS Proof-68 and the finest known of its kind, acquired for a client by GreatCollections for $7.68 million. (Photo credit: Professional Coin Grading Service.)
The numismatic market is very active, and the price increase of significant rarities results from the active market. Although the market favors United States coins, the collectors extend their collections to coins made elsewhere. Of the ten-million-dollar coins sold in 2021, four were not U.S. coins.
Here are the coins that sold for more than $1 million in 2021:
Million Dollar Coin Sales in 2021
| Sale Price |
Coin Sold |
Date Sold |
| $18,900,000 |
1933 Saint-Gaudens Double Eagle (King Farouk provenance) |
June 8, 2021 |
| $9,360,000 |
1787 Brasher Doubloon – EB on Wing (ex: Stickney-Ellsworth-Garrett-Partrick) |
January 21, 2021 |
| $8,400,000 |
1822 Half Eagle (ex: Pogue) |
March 25, 2021 |
| $7,680,000 |
1804 Bust Dollar – Class I (one of 15 known) |
August 18, 2021 |
| $5,280,000 |
1804 $10 Proof Eagle (Finest of Three known) |
January 20, 2021 |
| $4,750,000 |
1907 Saint-Gaudens Ultra High Relief Double Eagle |
April 6, 2021 |
| $2,640,000 |
1825 Russia Ruble Pattern with would-be Emperor Constantine |
April 6, 2021 |
| $2,280,000 |
1928 China Pattern Dollar featuring the warlord Zhang Zuolin |
April 6, 2021 |
| $2,280,000 |
1937 Edward VIII 5 Pounds Pattern (one of six known) |
March 26, 2021 |
| $2,160,000 |
1928 China Pattern “Mukden Tiger” Dollar (one of ten known) |
December 11, 2021 |
1. The Double Eagle That Flies Higher
Farouk-Fenton 1933 Saint-Gaudens $20 Double Eagle was sold by Sotheby’s for $18,872,250 in a June 2021 auction. (Picture Credit: PCGS)
Since that sale, several coins sold for more.
On June 8, 2021, Sotheby’s auctioned the Stuart Weitzman Collection, including rare Inverted Jenny Plate Block and the British Guiana One-Cent Black on Magenta stamps. The coin sold for a record $18,872,250.
It answers the question, “What is a coin worth?” What are you willing to pay for it?
Dec 26, 2021 | news
It has been a rough few years, so it is good to highlight a good story.
A news story from KXAS, the NBC-owned station in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, reported that a coin dealer opened a new storefront three years after being robbed.
According to the report, Christian Lyche was robbed of 75-percent of his inventory in April 2019. Although the police caught the robber, Lyche did not recover any merchandise or compensation.
Lyche said that the numismatic community helped him set up online, and he was back in business. After rebuilding his business, Lyche opened Dallas Gold and Gun last weekend. He reported having a good opening weekend.
Congratulations to Christian Lyche for recovering, following your dreams, and maintaining a positive presence in the hobby.
And now the news…
December 21, 2021
Rust Rare Coin owner Gaylen Rust, pictured in this July 2010 photo, pleaded guilty to wire fraud, securities fraud and money laundering in federal court on Monday. Matt Gillis, Deseret News SALT LAKE CITY — The second of three owners of a Utah rare coins business federally indicted in a Salt Lake City-based Ponzi scheme has pleaded guilty.
→ Read more at
deseret.com
December 22, 2021
Three years ago, Christian Lyche was at the beginning of his career and also rock bottom. He’d recently opened shop in Corinth, turning a passion for collecting coins into a thriving business. "I loved coins long before I bought and sold them, I collected them, traded them,” said Lyche.
→ Read more at
nbcdfw.com
December 22, 2021
Marine archaeologists diving off the coast of Caesarea have discovered a number of ancient artifacts in recent months, including some dating back to the third century, the Israel Antiquities Authority revealed on Wednesday.
→ Read more at
timesofisrael.com
December 23, 2021
Deep beneath the streets of London, locked in a vault behind a heavy swing door and iron gate, is the world's largest collection of rare coins. There are around 20,000 of them, from Roman denarii and ancient Greek decadrachms to British gold double sovereigns.
→ Read more at
news.sky.com
Dec 25, 2021 | administrative
As we celebrate the holidays and the new year, I hope we can remember those less fortunate who might need our help. Helping a neighbor is the best gift we can give and a sign of love beyond measure.
May the holidays find you happy, hopeful, and healthy.
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Reverse of the 2009 Latvia 1 Lat coin with the Christmas Tree on the reverse (Image courtesy of Latvijas Banka via Numista)
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Reverse of the 2012 Latvia 1 Lat coin with the Christmas Bells on the reverse
Dec 19, 2021 | Britain, coins, gold, silver
It is the time of year for retrospectives, looking back on the good and bad of the past year. But there is still time left in the year, and there is still news to cover.
Breaking late in the week, a Royal Proclamation passed to create a 50 pence coin to celebrate the 100th Anniversary of the British Broadcasting Company. The BBC was founded and made its first broadcast in 1922 on the recommendation of the General Post Office, which had problems managing broadcast licenses.
Gold has been hovering between $1760 and $1810 for the last two months. Although the gold spot price is close to the $1900 that some have predicted for the year-end price of gold, the $28 prediction of silver will fall short.
Silver has been on a steady fall since hitting $30 in February. Earlier in the year, the pandemic caused the closing of mines and processing facilities. The advancement of COVID-19 vaccines allows facilities to ramp up processing, and the increased supply allows prices to fall.
There are two weeks left in 2021 and time for more news.
And now the news…
December 16, 2021
If you like seeing ancient coins and understanding history through the coins, then Aloyseum, a museum at St Aloysius College in Mangaluru, is the place for you. Nearly 1,328 coins from 82 countries are on display.
→ Read more at
deccanherald.com
December 16, 2021
MANILA, Philippines – The decision of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) to exclude World War II heroes from the new P1,000 polymer banknotes met outrage from Filipinos. Descendants of Josefa Llanes Escoda, Vicente Lim, and Jose Abad Santos urged the BSP to keep the martyrs’ portraits and place the Philippine eagle – or other plants and animals the central bank wants to feature – on the other side of the bill.
→ Read more at
rappler.com
No news this week.
Dec 16, 2021 | advice, coins, counterfeit
Advertisement for fake Morgan Dollars from Facebook
Within the hour, I found ads for three different scammers trying to sell 2021 (CC) Morgan Dollars with images in a PCGS slab for $19.95.
First, you cannot trust any of the pictures. All of the pictures were copied from around the Internet, including the PCGS sample slab. These pictures appear in many places when performing an image search. Some of the images are edited versions from the U.S. Mint’s website.
When I entered the serial number on the image of the slab on the PCGS website verification form, they reported it as an invalid number.
No legitimate merchant will sell a newly released coin below the introduction and spot prices. The U.S. Mint sold the coin for $85 each, and the spot price closed at $22.13 today. Anyone selling a highly desirable coin for $19.95 is trying to scam you.
Within an hour, Facebook sent a report saying that they reviewed my reports from the ads. Facebook removed all of the ads. But I know this is a case of whack-a-mole, and more ads will appear soon. I encourage anyone using Facebook to report these ads when they appear on your timeline. If we work together, we can limit the impact of these scammers on the hobby.
Dec 15, 2021 | history, tokens
As I have been searching for hometown numismatics, I have been coming across merchant tokens that advertises deed to land for what seems to be a low price. All of the tokens have a Manhattan address, and all say that the business is open until 9 P.M.
None of the tokens have dates, but all have the same address. One side of the token describes what is being offered:
Finder will Receive / Deed to / One $150 / Building Lot / High and Dry / Near America’s / Finest Seashore Resort / Only $36.50/ Transfer Charge. / No Other Expenses / Open Evenings / Until 9 P.M.
The reverse says that the token has to be returned within 96 hours to the Advertising Department, Room 1274, in the Longacre Building at the corner of 42nd Street and Broadway.
According to public data available online, the Longacre Building was a 12-floor building in Times Square that opened in 1912. Before 1904, Times Square was known as Longacre Square, and the area was renamed when the New York Times opened its headquarters on the property of the old Pabst Hotel.
Some websites documenting old New York City buildings identify the same address as the Longacre Hotel from 1917 through 1932. It is possible that the building was turned into an inexpensive hotel, and the advertiser rented a room at the hotel.
Documentation suggests that the city demolished the building during the Great Depression using New Deal funding.
As I was looking for answers, a friend that is a professor in one of the city’s many colleges speculates that a Florida government issued the token. Early in the 20th century, Florida governments came to New York to entice New Yorkers to move to areas north of Miami or purchase land for second homes.
The condition of the sale or deed transfers is not known.
Many of New York City’s historical records are held at the main New York Public Library, not far from the Longacre Building once stood. Some day, I will go to the library to research the old records to find the story behind these tokens. Maybe it is an excellent excuse to go home in time for NYINC.
Dec 14, 2021 | medals
Hometown collecting now includes this medal from South Mecklenburg High School, where I went in the 1970s.
My family moved from New York to just outside of Charlotte in 1974. The area was outside of Charlotte, and Charlotte fueled its growth by annexing unincorporated parts of the county just over its borders. Within a few years, we were living in Charlotte.
I went to high school at South Mecklenburg High School. It was in one of the county’s unincorporated areas with a mailing address of nearby Pineville. Pineville is famous for being the birthplace of James K. Polk, the 18th President of the United States.
South Meck was the local basketball power. Future college and pro stars like Bobby Jones and Walter Davis played for South. After Jones and Davis graduated, they went to play for the University of North Carolina and then starred in the NBA. We won the State AAAA Championship my sophomore year.
While doing my hometown search for numismatics from Brooklyn and New York City, I had an idea to search for items from other times in my early life. I entered “South Mecklenburg” in the search bar to see what I could find.
After scrolling past old copies of the school yearbook, I found a bronze medal for the high school. I do not remember a medal like this. After I dug through a box to find an old yearbook, it resembles a school’s logo in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Since I collect numismatics of my past, I bought the medal and waited for it to be shipped.
The seller was from Europe and waited for the mail to swim across the pond. It was better looking in hand than in the picture online. The medal is 42mm in diameter with something to attach to a chain or a ribbon. It is one-sided, and Herff Jones is engraved on the reverse. I tried to contact Herff Jones and said they do not think they have records going that far back. Someone was going to look and see what they could find.
I graduated from South in 1978 then enrolled at the University of Georgia. Although I have found a few medals from Georgia, I may change my search criteria and see what else I can find.
Dec 12, 2021 | coins
It is the time of the year where we look for stocking stuffers for our numismatic friends and relatives. Although there are a lot of coins to choose from, I was looking for some other ideas.
In keeping with the holiday themes, I looked for a coin to give someone that spoke of the holiday. After searching for a simple stocking stuffer, I settled on a 2012 Latvia One Lat coin with Christmas bells on the reverse. I chose this coin because I previously purchased the 2009 Latvia One Lat coin with a Christmas tree on the reverse. These were the only two Christmas-themed circulating coins issued by Latvia.
While looking for something interesting, I found a $5 Heavenly Angels coin issued by the Marshall Islands in 1996. The copper-nickel coin comes in a blister pack embedded on a card. Although it is not a current issue, the Christmas theme on a card can add a little spice to a numismatist’s collection.
I needed one more collectible and stumbled over a postcard-like holder, in its envelope and titles Merry Christmas From Around the World. The card contains coins from Mexico, Luxembourg, Columbia, Norway, Austria, Finland, and China. Each coin has Mery Christmas in the native language of each country, including Chinese. They are all base metal coins from 1964 or 1965.
I found the Latvian and Marshal Islands coins on eBay, and I purchased the card from the mid-1960s from a nearby antique shop. Be careful buying foreign coins online. The Latvian coin came from Latvia, and overseas shipping is slower than expected.
If you can find something that the seller can ship on time, you can make a good impression with your favorite numismatist by finding Christmas-themed coins for the holiday.
And now the news…
December 3, 2021
A Scottsbluff man is hoping a donation to local fire departments will spur others to help out during a tough year.
→ Read more at
starherald.com
December 5, 2021
THE 1955 Lincoln obverse cent is one of the most unique coins in existence and you're very lucky if you happen to have one in your possession. Since 1909, the US Mint has struck cents that feature 16th US President Abraham Lincoln.
→ Read more at
the-sun.com
December 5, 2021
The coins were found near Southampton by three amateur detectorists who examined the field after carrying out research on Google Earth.
→ Read more at
bbc.com
December 10, 2021
A former deep-sea treasure hunter is preparing to mark his sixth year in jail for refusing to disclose the whereabouts of 500 missing coins made from gold found in an historic shipwreck.
→ Read more at
cbsnews.com
Dec 6, 2021 | coins, news
After a bit of a hiatus, the Coin Week podcast resumed with a discussion of Free Coin Day. Free Coin Day encourages dealers to give away one coin to every customer to celebrate coin collecting.
Free Coin Day was founded by Coin Week’s editor Charles Morgan and joined this year by Rob Oberth of Round Table Trading. Both are members of the ANA Board of Governors. They encourage those participating in Free Coin Day to use the hashtag #FreeCoinDay to help promote the venture.
While Free Coin Day is a good idea, it is preaching to the converted in many ways. It requires someone to be motivated to walk into a coin shop to participate. Unfortunately, there are fewer brick-and-mortar shops, and most dealers are either working shows only or selling online, and access to dealers is limited.
While Oberth and Morgan have the beginning of a good idea but it does not go far enough. New collectors want experiences, and their collections represent something about their experiences.
Other collecting industries learned this the hard way. During the market downturn of 2008, most industries retrenched and figured out a way to revive old hobbies. The comics industry was not as vibrant. The idea of changing the industry beyond the paper book was not something the publishers wanted to do because it was the lifeblood of the industry.
The publishers realized that paper-based products were on their way out. The industry diversified with ancillary products, including movies, modern stories, collectibles, and experiences. One of the attempts to expand their reach was to embrace the existing ComicCons. The publishers poured more money into the ComicCons and used the larger Cons to launch products.
During the podcast, Oberth and Morgan all but dismiss the ideas learned from the comics industry. Rather than trying to figure out a way to make coin collecting an experience, they are giving away low-end coins trying to entice distracted Millenials and GenXers into coin shops.
And now the news…
November 30, 2021
The simple coin design was quickly replaced, leaving only 40 or so surviving specimens today. Courtesy of Morton and Eden
→ Read more at
smithsonianmag.com
December 3, 2021
December 5, 2021
THE 1955 Lincoln obverse cent is one of the most unique coins in existence and you're very lucky if you happen to have one in your possession. Since 1909, the US Mint has struck cents that feature 16th US President Abraham Lincoln.
→ Read more at
the-sun.com
December 5, 2021
St Barbe Museum
→ Read more at
bbc.com
As we celebrate the holidays and the new year, I hope we can remember those less fortunate who might need our help. Helping a neighbor is the best gift we can give and a sign of love beyond measure.
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