Jun 1, 2007 | coins, commemorative, US Mint
Every month, the US Mint’s History In your Pocket (H.I.P) program chooses one coin to feature and provides education materials for teachers to use in teaching history using numismatics. This month’s coin is the 1915 Panama-Pacific $50 commemorative coin.
Minted to commemorate the 1915 Panama-Pacific Exposition in San Francisco that celebrated the opening of the Panama Canal and rebuilding of San Francisco following the Great Earthquake of 1906. The Mint created five different commemoratives for the exposition including an octagonal gold coin with a $50 face value. Its unusual shape makes it intriguing.
Robert Aitken, a New York artist born in San Francisco, was selected to design the fifty dollar round and octagonal coins. The obverse is based on the Roman goddess Minerva and an owl on the reverse to symbolize wisdom. Although the coin was ridiculed as not having American symbols. But the designs are well executed and appreciated by collectors today.
May 16, 2007 | commemorative, legislative
On Tuesday, May 15, the US House of Representatives passed H.R. 634, “American Veterans Disabled for Life Commemorative Coin Act” by a unanimous 416-0 vote. The bill authorized the the minting of a $1 silver commemorative coin commemorating disabled American Veterans to be issued in 2010. The design of the coin is to be selected by the Disabled Veterans’ LIFE Memorial Foundation.
The coin will be sold with a $10 surcharge that will be dispensed to the Disabled Veterans’ LIFE Memorial Foundation so that an endowment can be established to support the construction of American Veterans’ Disabled for Life Memorial. The National Capital Planning Commission has selected (PDF) a location at Washington Avenue (Canal Street) and Second Street SW in Washington, DC for the memorial.
The enrolled bill will be sent to the Senate for consideration. If it passes the Senate without modification, it will be sent to the President for his signature.
May 16, 2007 | coins, commemorative, foreign, fun
Every so often, you have to buy a coin or a set of coins because they are just neat. Here is something about my recent purchase.
One of my non-numismatic interests are motorcycles. I used to love riding bikes in my younger days. It was fun to drive through the woods that were behind the house we lived in during my teen years. Unfortunately, real life has limited my current interest to watching the guys on American Chopper create neat bikes. For my mid-life crisis, I will buy a nice motorcycle—maybe one of those wonderful OCC bikes!
Last year, the Federal Republic of Somalia issued a set of six coins in the shape of guitars. These non-circulating legal tender coins were made from silver plated copper-nickel shapes and enameled with the design. They are non-circulating legal tender issued at the value of one dollar, even though the shilling is the standard currency of Somalia.
This year the theme is motorcycles. The six coin set is based on designs of Harley Davidson motorcycles and other bikes. With my interest in motorcycles, I decided to buy the set at the last Whitman Baltimore Coin and Currency Convention. I think these coins rank on the “oh neat” scale!
It is not enough to post images here, coins like these have to be displayed. I want a display that enhances their “oh neat” appeal. One idea is to frame the coin with a sheet of the Postal Service’s American Motorcycle Stamps. A full sheet of the stamps would be framed in the center of a mat and three coins on either side. But while surfin’ the Internet, I came across the Sturgis Motorcycle Museum. In their Museum Gift Shop they offer the framed motorcycle stamps canceled on the First Day of Issue that were first made available at the 2006 Sturgis Motorcycle Rally. I may buy one and see if I can incorporate the coins into that display or use it for another.
Either way, these coins are neat!
Click on image to see a larger version.
May 12, 2007 | CCAC, coins, commemorative, gold, US Mint
It was a busy week for me and the US Mint. While I was toiling to help another government agency from failing on one job, the Mint was demonstrating why it is the world’s largest manufacturer of numismatic items. So let’s look at the news…
On May 4, the Mint announced that it will begin to take orders for the Little Rock Central High School Desegregation 50th Anniversary Silver Dollars on May 15, starting at noon. This coin commemorates the historical significance of the desegregation of Little Rock Central High School following the landmark 1954 Brown v. Board of Education decision by the US Supreme Court. For more about this coin, read my article “Little Rock Central High Commem Design.”
The Mint quietly dropped the discussion of producing fractional American Buffalo 24-karat Gold Coins and extended the potential release date until June. It is suspected that the Mint may require congress to pass necessary legislation in order to authorize the production fractional Buffalo coins, although this has not been confirmed by the Mint. Uncirculated 2007 Buffalo coins can be purchased from dealers and on the secondary market.
Earlier this month, the Mint advertised that they would sell the First Spouse gold coins by the set at $1,675.95. But the Mint announced this week that they will begin to sell First Spouse gold coins individually started at noon on June 19, 2007 for the Martha Washington and Abigail Adams coins. Jefferson’s Liberty coin will be for sale on August 16 and the Dolley Madison coin on November 15. No set will be offered. Individual coins will sell for $429.95 as proof coins and $410.95 as uncirculated coins.
The Mint also announced that the Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee (CCAC) will meet Tuesday, May 15, at the Philadelphia Downtown Marriott Hotel at 9 A.M. On the agenda is the design of the Congressional Gold Medal to honor the Dalai Lama as well as the proposed design for the 2008 American Bald Eagle Commemorative Coins.
Time to go take some pictures so I have some fun stuff to talk about.
All images from the US Mint.
Mar 1, 2007 | coins, commemorative
As March begins, it is time to check with our friends in congress to see what is next on the numismatic agenda. Using Thomas, the legislative service of the Library of Congress, I found that Michigan Senator Debbie Stabenow (D), co-sponsored by Senator Carl Levin (D), introduced S.587, Model T Ford Automobile Commemorative Coin Act, to commemorate “the Model T Ford Automobile and the 100th anniversary of the Highland Park Plant, Michigan, the birthplace of the assembly line.”
The impact of the assembly line that Henry Ford developed to manufacture the Model T in 1910 is considered a hallmark in the growth of industry in the United States. It made the Model T more affordable to more people and turning the United States into a culture built around he automobile. By 1918, half of the cars sold were the Ford Model T.
Ford did not stop with the assembly line. Ford paid the assembly line workers $5 per day, a significant mount in the early 20th century, understanding that by paying more it will make his workers consumers.
S.587 calls for the minting of 500,000 commemorative coins made from 90-percent silver, weigh 26.73 grams, and have a diameter of 1.5 inches (38 mm). The design is supposed to “be emblematic of the Model T Ford and the assembly line.”
If passed, this commemorative will be sold in 2010. Sales of these coins will include a $10 surcharge that will be shared with the Automobile National Heritage Area Partnership Inc. to create an educational endowment and The Edison Institute.
The bill was introduced on February 14, 2007 and has been referred to Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.
Jan 29, 2007 | coins, commemorative
Last week, the US Mint presented the design for the Little Rock Central High School Desegregation Silver Dollar. The coin commemorates the first challenge by a state to the Supreme Court ruling in Brown v. Topeka, Kansas Board of Education ordering the desegregation of public schools. The nine students at the center of the showdown at Little Rock Central High School is being honored on this commemorative.
The obverse “features a simple, yet powerful design depicting students, accompanied by an armed United States soldier, walking to school.’ The soldier was a member of the 101st Airborne Division. The “Screaming Eagles” was called in by President Dwight Eisenhower to protect the students when Governor Orval Faubus refused to allow the Arkansas National Guard to provide protection in defiance of the federal order. The obverse design includes nine stars representing the nine students known as the Little Rock Nine trying to attend Central High School.
The reverse depicts the Little Rock Central High School as it looked in 1957. Little Rock Central High School was designated a National Historic Site in 1998 and continues to operate as a high school in the Little Rock public school system.
The obverse of this coin was designed by Richard Masters, a Master Designer with the Artistic Infusion Program. US Mint Sculptor-Engraver Charles Vickers sculpted the design. The reverse was designed and sculpted by US Mint Sculptor-Engraver Don Everhart. It is a powerful design that is fitting for this anniversary. It may be one of the few commemoratives I may buy.
Images are from the United State Mint. Click any image to enlarge.
Jan 10, 2007 | coins, commemorative, US Mint
Today at noon, the US Mint made the first coins of 2007 available for purchase from their on-line catalog. To celebrate the 400th Anniversary of the first permanent settlement in North America at Jamestown, Virginia, the Mint is issuing proof and uncirculated gold and silver commemorative coins.
The Mint will be offering all coins at a pre-release discount until February 12. The proof silver sells for $35 but will be raised to $39 after the pre-release period. The uncirculated coins will sell for $33 then be raised to $35. The gold proof is selling for $232 and the uncirculated gold coin for $220. Both gold coins will be increased by $25 after the pre-release period. Shipping is expected to begin in late January or early February.
Coins may be ordered from the Mint on-line or via the telephone at 800-USA-MINT (800-872-6468).
Surcharges from the sale of these coins will be donated to the Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation of the Commonwealth of Virginia, the Department of the Interior, and the Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities to support programs that promote the understanding of the legacies of Jamestown.
Jan 5, 2007 | coins, commemorative, US Mint
The US Mint announced that the launch of the Jamestown 400th Anniversary Commemorative Coins will be held on January 11, 2007, 10 A.M., at the Jamestown Settlement in Virginia. Collectors attending the ceremony will be able to purchase the gold and silver collectibles on site. Those unable to attend may order these coins from the Mint’s online catalog starting at noon on January 10.
Images from the US Mint. Click to see larger versions.
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