Celebrating 100 Years of Fixing a Mistake
On August 18, 1920, Tennessee became the 36th state to ratify the 19th Amendment to the United States Constitution. After a battle in the Tennessee House, which was lead by an anti-suffragist leader, two members changed their votes at the last minute.
Although people in the United States tout the “right to vote,” suffrage has been a long and difficult fight since before the signing of the Constitution. It did not end with the 19th Amendment as its text did not eliminate the discrimination based on race.
The fight for the “right” continues today. Reduced access to polls, including the closing of precincts in minority districts and hindering the Postal Service’s ability to handle ballots, infringe on everyone’s suffrage rights.
The commemorative coin reflects the history of the movement by depicting women wearing different hat styles during the thick of the fight. The movement started to gain momentum in the 1870s when states and territories in the West allowed women to vote. The first attempt to pass an amendment for suffrage began in 1878, where the depiction of the commemorative coin begins.
On the reverse is a depiction of a ballot box. The box has an art deco design with the centennial anniversary year looming large as it is descending into the ballot box.
The coin was designed by Christina Hess, a member of the Artistic Infusion Program and sculpted by Phebe Hemphill. The dollar coin is .999 silver with a mintage limit of 400,000. The sale of each coin includes a $10 surcharge paid to the Smithsonian Institution’s American Women’s History Initiative.
It is an excellent design to depict the 100th Anniversary of the ratification of the 19th Amendment. Although I am not a collector of commemorative coins, this may be one that I will add to the coins I collect because the design is worthy of collecting.
Is There Really A Favorite Modern Commemorative Coin?
Every week, Heritage Auctions sends out an email newsletter from their various auctions. Saturdays, they send out a newsletter about their coin auctions. While the newsletter is mostly about their upcoming auction and tips for using their website, there are some interesting tidbits that make it worth reading. One of the interesting features is the interactive section toward the end of the note.
Up until recently, the interactive section was more of a numismatic trivia-type of section where they asked two questions. You selected your answers and clicked through to their site to see how you did compared to others. Recently, Heritage changed the section to be a poll. This week’s question (copied so you can participate):
This got me thinking as to why were these coins chosen out of all of the possible modern commemoratives. Two are based on classic designs: 1999 George Washington Commemorative $5 gold coin was based on the design that Laura Gardin Fraser submitted for the design of the 1932 Washington Quarter that was turned down by then Secretary of the Treasury Andrew Mellon, a known misogynist; the 2001 American Buffalo Commemorative Silver Dollar was based on James Earle Fraser’s Type 1 Buffalo Nickel design. James Earle Fraser and Laura Gardin Fraser were husband and wife.
The 1992 Olympic Silver Dollar features a baseball pitcher that is similar to the image of Nolan Ryan that appeared on the 1991 Fleer baseball card. Although designer John Deecken denied the connection, the coin is sometimes referred to as the “Nolan Ryan Commemorative.”
One of the significant attributes of the 1999 Dolley Madison Silver dollar is that the coin was designed by Tiffany & Co., the famous jewelry company, whose moniker “T&Co” appears on the coin as the designer. It marks the first time that a private company’s name appears on a United States coin.
Finally, the 2000 Library of Congress $10 Bimetallic Commemorative Coin is the only coin featuring this type of bimetallic composition. The coin features an outer ring made of gold surrounding a center made from platinum.
As I looked at the list, I knew that the 2001 Buffalo Dollar would be the most popular even though I think the 2000 Library of Congress Bimetallic commemorative is the most unique. But why these coins? The U.S. Mint has issued a lot of commemorative coins with great designs since restarting the commemorative coin program with the 1982 George Washington Half Dollar with the 2012 Star Spangled Banner coins being the most recent.
Since I am not a collector of commemorative coins, I was thinking that if I had to choose five coins what would I have chosen and why. Here is my list (in date order):
- 1982 George Washington Half Dollar because it is the first of what we consider the modern commemorative period.
- 2000 Library of Congress $10 Bimetallic Commemorative Coin because it is the only bimetallic coin of its type made by the U.S. Mint.
- 2001 American Buffalo Commemorative Silver Dollar because it is similar to the design of the Buffalo nickel, one of my favorite coins.
- 2008 Bald Eagle Half Dollar with the obverse showing two baby eaglets and an egg in an eagle’s nest with the reverse an image of the Bald Eagle “Challenger.” This coin shows the continuing of the Bald Eagle like the continuing of the nation. I love the symbolism.
- 2012 Star Spangled Banner Silver Dollar screams “United States of America!”
I do own a 2012 Star Spangled Banner Proof Silver Dollar.
Shona Tova
Source: israelmint.com via CoinsBlog on Pinterest
Medal image courtesy of the Israel Coins and Medals Corporation.
NGC Goes Retro
Source: ngccoin.com via CoinsBlog on Pinterest
Numismatic Guarantee Corporation will go retro with a limited edition 25th Anniversary Holder to celebrate “25 years and 25 million coins.”
The announcement made on September 11, 2012 said that NGC will offer the Limited Edition holder with a black core and special label for Silver Eagles, Sacagawea, and Presidential Dollars for coins submitted between October 1 and December 31, while supplies last. Coins submitted for retro holders must be submitted at the Modern Special tier or higher ($20 per coin, five coin minimum) with no extra fee for special holder. Invoice must be marked “RETRO HOLDER” and no cross-overs allowed. Please read NGC’s announcement for more information.
Source: coinlink.com via CoinsBlog on Pinterest
NGC was founded in 1987, by John Albanese after co-founding Professional Coin Grading Service. For their first month, NGC encased coins they graded in a holder with a black core (see image to the left). The black core was only used for about a month before NGC switched to the white core we know today. Because coin grading was very conservative in 1987 as compared with today, it was common for the coins in the black holders to be cracked and the coins resubmitted in hopes to have the coin grade higher. As a result, fewer coins have survived in those black holders making the holder a collectable unto itself.
This is an interesting gimmick by NGC. Not only have they found another way to get around the “buy the coin, not the holder” sentiment, but without announcing how many holders they will release, could be fueling speculation on the value of the holder as a premium over the coin. No doubt it will add to the continuing discussion as to collectibility of special holders and labels from the third-party grading services.
Always Remember
As we look at remembering those who died 11 years after the attacks on New York, Washington, and those who brought that plane down in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, the U.S. Mint published a video where they interviewed members of the die and polishing department about their part in the making of the 2011 September 11 National Medal.
As you heard in the video, you can still purchase the medal from the U.S. Mint with either the “P” or “W” mintmark for $66.95 each. The medals are one troy ounce of fine silver and the price includes a $10 surcharge that will be paid to the National September 11 Memorial & Museum at the World Trade Center in lower Manhattan.
It may also be time for congress to do something bipartisan and create a medal to raise funds for the Flight 93 National Memorial that will be erected in Shanksville. With the museum in New York and The National 9/11 Pentagon Memorial, it will complete the honor of those who died on that day. Then we can work on a memorial to honor the military who have shouldered the burden since.
Scott’s 10 Most Desired Coins Within Reason
I was reading the article “How to follow the money in rare-coin collecting” at MarketWatch.com about the basics of collecting rare coins when I noticed that it pointed to a page withe a slideshow, “The $1 million penny and 7 more famous coins.”
The list has only one “reasonably priced” coin—that is a coin that someone with a little means could afford. It lists the an 1850 Double Eagle at $13,000. That started me to think about the potential to actually owning a few rare collector coins with value and something more align with my tastes. After thinking about this I came up with a list of my “10 Most Desired Coins Within Reason.” In this case, I defined reason as not being so rare that it could only be bought with the help of a good dealer and would not require bidding on it at a once-in-a-lifetime auction. I also set a limit of $5,000 on the price of any coin. I know this may limit the inventory to lower grade for some coins, but those lower grades could give the coin character.
Mostly in denomination and date order, here are Scott’s 10 Most Desired Coins Within Reason:
- 1793 Flowing Hair Chain Cent with AMERI. in Legend is basically amongst the first legal tender coins produced by the U.S. Mint. I know that there was an earlier run of half-dismes, but they were not real production runs. If I am going to produce a list like this, I am going to pick the coin I like and break one of my rules because even at its lowest grade, the coin will probably cost more than $10,000.
- 1909-S Indian Head Cent in Mint State Red. Even though the 1908-S was the first Indian Head cent struck in San Francisco, I am choosing the rarer of the two S-mint Indian Heads in Mint State Red. Of course, this may also break my budget but it would be no fun otherwise.
- 1909-S VDB Lincoln Cent may not be the most expensive Lincoln Cent (the 1914 is), but it is the first of the iconic series and part of the controversy started because of the “V.D.B” initials on the reverse. Fortunately, I already own one graded as VF-30BN by NGC.
- 1955 Double Die Obverse Lincoln Cent is the coin that sparked the interest in error collecting. It is remarkable to think that one coin, a mistake, created a new segment of the hobby. For me, I already own one graded AU-58BN by NGC that I really like.
- 1937-D 3-Legged Buffalo is a very cool coin. Aside that the Buffalo Nickel is one of my favorite coin designs, there is something intriguing about the story behind this coin. Fortunately, the one I own was graded VF-25 by NGC and the last of the ones I already own on this list.
- 1917 Type 1 Standing Liberty Quarter is a compromise because the 1916 would be too expensive. In order to add a type 1 design (with breast exposed), the 1917 version is more reasonably priced in higher grades.
- 1921 Walking Liberty Half Dollar would be the coin I would point to on this list as being my favorite design. For me, only the Saint-Gaudens Double Eagle come close to Adolph Weinman’s design. It should not surprise anyone that Weinman was one of Saint Gaudens’ students. The 1921 half dollars were almost an afterthought as the U.S. Mint was rushing to produce silver dollars and the 1921 fits the criteria to buy one in higher grades.
- 1878-CC Morgan Dollar in the GSA Holder because it is interestingly historic. The Morgan Dollar was authorized by the Bland-Allison Act that required the Treasury Department to buy silver from western mines and put them into circulation as silver dollars. It was passed after the Coinage Act of 1873, sometimes referred to as the “Crime of ’73,” demonetized silver and set the standard for gold as the backing of the national currency. Not only do you get the collectible from a western state near a western mine, but the GSA Holder is from the historic sales of the 1970s after the GSA started pulling coins out of storage in buildings long forgotten.
- 1908 Indian Head Gold Half-Eagle because if you make a list like this, there has to be some gold on it. If I am going to do a gold coin, I want the only coin whose design is incuse to the coin. Bela Pratt Lyon’s incuse Indian Head design is unique and nicely available in its first year of mintage.
- 1907 No Motto Saint Gaudens Double Eagle because this list cannot be complete with the other of the two most iconic designs ever made for a circulating coin. Since 1907 is the first year, this is the most affordable of the three types made that year and is more available than the high-relief versions.
Do you have a similar list? Add it to the comments below.
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