2013 America the Beautiful Five Ounce Silver Uncirculated Coins™ have yet to be struck, the United States Mint confirmed Monday.
Production of the 99.9% pure silver coins for collectors are on hold until mintage levels are determined, U.S. Mint spokesman Michael White said Monday. The bureau has, however, started producing the first two bullion five ounce coins.
Each of the five 2013-dated America the Beautiful Five Ounce Silver Uncirculated Coins had been listed on the U.S. Mint’s 2013 Product Schedule with at least a month named for a release date. They were pulled on Monday and moved under the section titled: "On Sale Date To Be Determined."
White said that the 12-month product schedule was published early to give customers as much information as possible "to make their purchasing decisions throughout the year," but that release dates and listed prices are subject to change.
"In releasing the product schedule as well in advance as possible, we knew that pricing and date changes for some products would inevitably occur, as the dates did regarding the 2013 America the Beautiful Five Ounce Silver Uncirculated Coins," Michael White stated.
The original news release in December about the schedule and the actual online schedule at www.usmint.gov/catalog warns of changes and encourages customers to regularly check back.
"We look forward to announcing the revised dates on the product schedule as soon as possible once they are determined," added White. "We regret any inconvenience this date change may cause our valued customers who purchase America the Beautiful Silver Uncirculated Coins."
Four of last year’s uncirculated coins remain available. Each has a stated mintage of 25,000. Current sales figures for them range from 12,608 to 16,029. It seems likely that mintages for this year’s coins could retreat to the 20,000 area.
America the Beautiful Five Ounce Silver Coins feature the same obverse and reverse designs as the America the Beautiful Quarters®. Each has a three-inch diameter, making them the biggest coin produced by the U.S. Mint. Two versions are struck for each design — a bullion coin intended for investors and the numismatic uncirculated coin for collectors. Each is from Philadelphia, but only the uncirculated coin has a "P" mint mark.
This year’s America the Beautiful coins honor White Mountain National Forest in New Hampshire, Perry’s Victory and International Peace Memorial in Ohio, Great Basin National Park in Nevada, Fort McHenry National Monument and Historic Shrine in Maryland and Mount Rushmore National Memorial in South Dakota.
The Philadelphia Mint has started striking the 2013 White Mountain National Forest and the 2013 Perry’s Victory and International Peace Memorial America the Beautiful Five Ounce Silver Bullion Coins.
