All good things come to an end. The 50 State Quarters® Program is near that end. Or, is it?

Next year all 50 states will have been commemorated and, by law, the state quarters series will close down.

However, there’s legislation that has passed the House and is already in the Senate’s hands to change that.

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They’re not the home run makers in the series of Mint coinage but they do make a big hit every now and again… The 2007 Uncirculated Coin Sets are almost up to bat.

They’re on deck, in fact. Standby because on October 9th, you can purchase them through the United States Mint.

Them? In short, a complete set of 2007 uncirculated coins from the U.S. Mints at Denver and Philadelphia. The sets are a special breed of coins many collectors like to own because they’re different.

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There’s nothing better than some variety between coins to peak a person’s interest and excitement. The 50 State Quarters® and new Presidential $1 Coins highlight how changing a coin’s design every few months can kindle passion with at least collectors.

What’s your excitement level when a batch of coins gets minted but a percentage of them have slight variations compared to others in that coin’s series?

Hold your thoughts… In this case, we’re not talking about coins with errors due to mint manufacturing mistakes or unintended die varieties. (Although these are very intriguing for many collectors too.) Let’s dig in a bit more…

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The United States Mint has released the 2007 Wyoming Official First Day Coin Cover.

These limited edition covers hold two Wyoming state quarters that were each minted on the very first day of the coin’s production.

Just like the Jefferson $1 Coin Cover recently released, one coin included is from the United States Mint at Philadelphia while the other is from Denver.

Also placed on the cover is an American Flag postage stamp and a postmark date of September 4, 2007, which indicates the day the Wyoming state quarters were first released to the public.

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America loves their series. First came the 50 State Quarters. Next came the Westward Journey Nickels. Then the Presidential $1 Coins.

Now wait… Be patient… And please hold your horses… Why? Because a new Sacagawea Golden Dollars series is on the way.

Is it just me or is your heart NOT racing? Well, the new commemorative Sacagawea Dollars won’t be out until 2009 so maybe there’s time to build some excitement.

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eBay’s trying to step up efforts to stymie fraudulent numismatic listings and the selling of counterfeit coins.

Last week they implemented an updated policy for how certified coins could be listed in online auctions. What’s changed?

In writing, not much. The policy guidelines aren’t exactly long. However, the changes they detail are significant.

eBay’s policy update for certified coins

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Discover a mysterious shipwreck, give it a cool code name, secretly haul from it a spectacular treasure of coins possibly worth $500 million, and then announce it to all the world.

What do you get? In this day and age, a free trip to court and mounting legal bills!

The Spanish government is battling Odyssey Marine Exploration, a U.S. treasure hunting company, over their discovery of a shipwreck somewhere in the Atlantic Ocean.

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For the lucky few able to get one of the Jefferson Liberty First Spouse Gold Coins, take heart. If you haven’t already received yours, they’re on the way.

And the coins are, if you’ll forgive me… SWEEET!

Although variation in delivery dates were given based on order times, no orders were actually shipped when the Jefferson Spouse coins were first sold on August 30th.

The U.S. Mint receipts listed the coins in the "backordered" category for everyone.

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For the first time ever the U.S. Bureau of Engraving and Printing digitally unveiled a new bill redesign.

The new $5 bill will mix into the circulating starting in early 2008 and is promised to be "safer, smarter and more secure".

The Bureau of Engraving and Printing launched the digital redesign through an Internet news conference that was backed up with excellent web site resources describing the new $5.

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Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee - who are they and what do they do?

Since the government is responsible for minting coins, you could suspect it’s more than one or two people who are responsible for designing them.

But wait, we’re talking about the government… Obviously, we need to be thinking about committees when it comes to decision making!

There are, in fact, many layers in getting a new coin design out the door. And although there’s some jest when it comes to talking about the government, the design of coinage - whether it’s good or bad - is no simple thing.

An interesting party in one phase of a coin’s design is the Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee, or CCAC for short.

Unless you read Public Law or have been in the numismatic world and have followed the development path of a new coin, the CCAC is likely foreign to you.

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