This article presents photos of a 2017 American Liberty High Relief Gold Coin, the United States Mint’s flagship 225th anniversary product.
Released on April 6, the West Point Mint-struck piece is composed from an ounce of 99.99% fine gold and bears a collector proof finish.
The gold coin introduces a new biennial design series where Liberty reflects the cultural and ethnic diversity of the United States. Forthcoming coins will show Lady Liberty portrayed as an Asian-American, Hispanic-American, and Indian-American among others, according to the U.S. Mint.
This first coin depicts Liberty rendered as an African-American woman wearing a crown of five-pointed stars. The reverse (tails) shows an eagle in flight, with eyes toward opportunity and a determination to attain it. Here’s a pair of photos showing both coin sides:
The crown of stars pays homage to the bronze Statue of Freedom topping the dome of the U.S. Capitol.
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This next photo offers a larger view of the coin’s eagle-in-flight reverse.
Proof coins feature frosted designs and mirror-like backgrounds. The coin’s proof finish and laser frosting levels are hard to capture in photos, made more difficult by its high-relief format which throws around a lot of angled light. The following video offers a better showing of how the finish looks under light:
This collectible is actually the Mint’s very first high-relief $100 coin with a proof finish. The U.S. Mint’s first $100 American Liberty launched in 2015. It features a "business strike" finish, with photos of one here:
Back to the newest coin… below are close-ups of the coin’s edge. It’s unique with three separated sets of raised edge inscriptions reading ★ 225th ANNIVERSARY ★. The first photo is of an edge straight on while the second photo is a topside view.
High-relief $100 American Liberty’s are a bit smaller but a tad thicker than other 1-ounce gold pieces, like the American Eagle and Buffalo gold coins. These two photos offer visual comparisons:
Available from the U.S. Mint right here, pricing of the 2017 $100 American Liberty is $1,640.00. That can change depending on the weekly average of LBMA gold. (It also launched on April 6 at $1,640.00.) The coin’s mintage limit is 100,000. It sales reached about 19% of the possible through the end of April.
These next two photos show a coin standing upright, which also highlights that each are encapsulated for protection.
Each ships within a black lacquered hardwood presentation case, and is accompanied by a booklet detailing the evolution of Lady Liberty. Below are photos of the coin’s packaging, its presentation case and the booklet.
Later in 2017, the United States Mint will release .999 fine silver medal versions of the gold coin. Five of them are expected with two from the Philadelphia Mint (proof and reverse proof); one from the San Francisco Mint (proof); one from the Denver Mint (uncirculated); and one from the West Point Mint (enhanced uncirculated).
Last year, the Mint issued two silver medals bearing the same design as the 2015 American Liberty gold coin. The two were proofs, with one from West Point and the other from San Francisco. Both sold out within minutes.
In ending, below are a few more CoinNews photos of the coin under varying lighting conditions.
