The Lincoln Coin and Chronicles Set was issued by the US Mint on Oct. 15 and 50,000 promptly sold out within 30 hours.

While many collectors on release day experienced anguishing moments due to ordering hiccups at the hands of the Mint, they are smiling more these days.

The Lincoln coins are desirable, the set packaging attractive, and Mint came through with rapid shipping.

Better, and this never hurts, the sets are commanding more than double their $55.95 issue price in the secondary market.

An analysis (see chart below) of over 1,000 eBay auctions from Oct. 14 through Nov. 2 indicate that the quantity of sets sold is increasing, yet their premiums are remaining strong. The continuing demand has been a boon for sellers. Read the rest of this entry »

With the release ceremony for the final 2009 Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Cent scheduled for next week, the US Mint has also announced plans for two additional exchange opportunities for those wanting to get their hands on some of the new 2009 Lincoln DC Presidency Cents.

The ceremony itself is scheduled for 10 AM ET on Thursday, Nov. 12, at the Ulysses S. Grant Memorial on the west side of the US Capitol in Washington, D.C. Following the program, which is expected to last around 30 minutes, attendees will be given the opportunity to exchange cash for new bank-wrapped rolls of the Presidency cents.

Also at 10 AM, two other sites in D.C. will offer coin exchanges. The first will be at the US Mint’s sales outlet at Union Station, 50 Massachusetts Ave N.E. The second will take place on the first floor of the US Mint’s headquarters, 801 Ninth Ave N.W.

All three locations will allow the exchange of cash for a minimum of two rolls up to a maximum of six rolls of the newly minted Lincoln cents. Each roll will contain 50 circulation quality coins struck at the Mint’s facility in Philadelphia. The Mint has stated in advance that the limits may be changed at any time. Read the rest of this entry »

US Mint circulating production levels for the third 2009 Lincoln penny, known as the Professional Life cent, are now known for each Mint facility in Denver and Philadelphia.

2009 Lincoln Cent Mintages

The Birthplace or "Log Cabin" penny continues to rank as the scarcest in combined Denver and Philadelphia mintages, while the 2009-P Lincoln Birthplace cent is still the most scarce at 284,400,000. Read the rest of this entry »

It took longer than many collectors expected, but the Lincoln Coin and Chronicles Set sold out prior to 6:00 p.m. Eastern Time on Friday, Oct. 16.

The US Mint kept the set open in a standby status for several days, with the following message displayed at its online store:

Waiting List Notice: The number of orders we have taken meets the maximum limit for the United States Mint Lincoln Coin and Chronicles Set. You may still place an order for this product, which will go on a waiting list. If a product becomes available due to an order cancellation, we will fulfill orders from the waiting list on a first-in, first-served basis. We cannot provide information about your position on the waiting list.

When we place your order on the waiting list, we will send you an order receipt. This is not a guarantee that you will receive your order. If we are not able to fulfill part or all of your order, you will receive a cancellation or sold-out notification. If you paid by check, you will receive a refund.

Prior to noon ET on the Thursday, Oct. 22, the Mint officially ended sales, and closed out the Chronicles set for all time.

In the end, 50,000 sets were purchased by collectors in less than 30 hours. (Numismatic News editor Dave Harper reported 29,919 were sold by 5 p.m. ET on Thursday.) Obviously, the sell out did not occur on day one, as many were thinking possible, but it was crystal clear how furious the demand was following their Thursday noon launch. US Mint phone lines were extremely backed up with repeated automated messages to "try again later" and the entire Mint Web site was down for hours. The Mint later issued an apology for the online hassles customers had to experience. Read the rest of this entry »

Thursday was a day of excitement, anger and despair for many coin collectors who attempted to place an order early for the new US Mint Lincoln Coin and Chronicles Set.

Whether an order was placed by phone or straight from the Mint’s Web site, the more likely outcome for most collectors was inaction and irritation. Visitors to the site were greeted with a "Service Unavailable" or simply a generic "The connection was reset" message. The site was down more than up. Those calling on the phone were met with a repeated automated message "We are unable to answer your call at this time. Please try again later."

The sets were released at noon ET. By accounts, the Mint appeared to be the busiest they have ever been this year. An easing seemed to occur after the first hour went by. After many, many repeated attempts, phone orders went through more readily. The web appeared to be a bigger problem. The Mint site returned to a more normal and consistent behavior by 3:30 pm ET. By evening, it was as smooth as ever.

Of course many collectors were more than frustrated. The Mint did have more staff on hand, but it comes to a point that there is only so much they can do when there appears to be tens of thousands of collectors who come knocking on the door nearly at once. Read the rest of this entry »

An objective of many coin collectors today will be to fight through the expected wait lines to acquire the US Mint’s 2009 Lincoln Coin and Chronicles Set. It launches at noon Eastern Time for the price of $55.95. As the Mint announced in Sept., there is a one order limit per household in affect, with a total of 50,000 available worldwide.

The set offers the final opportunity to purchase an Abraham Lincoln Commemorative Proof Silver Dollar — the same dollar that sold out individually earlier in the year to the tune of 325,000 in under 6 weeks. As we discussed last week, there is excitement in the air for this set, with a few enterprising individuals already offering them for pre-sale on eBay at huge premiums. (See Lincoln Coin & Chronicles Sets on eBay.)

In addition to the silver dollar, the special set also includes: Read the rest of this entry »

Continuing the tradition of providing Web sites with quality up-to-date information in an easy to understand layout, CoinNews Media Group LLC is happy to announce the introduction of our newest family member, LincolnCoinChroniclesSet.com.

As the name describes, the site is devoted to the new Lincoln Coin and Chronicles Set due to be released from the United States Mint on Thursday, October 15, 2009 at Noon (Eastern Time). The coin world has been abuzz with excitement over this release not only because of the pieces it contains, but also the extremely limited mintage.

"We are happy to offer LincolnCoinChroniclesSet.com to the public," said Mike Unser, founder and president of CoinNews Media Group LLC. "Those taking the time to visit the site will find it flushed with detailed information on the Lincoln Set and updates on how the collecting community is reacting to its availability."

"Perhaps no other figure in the history of the United States has had such a profound influence upon it as has Abraham Lincoln. His leadership during the American Civil War tore at him personally, and in the end cost him his own life. The Lincoln Coin and Chronicles Set is a fitting homage to a humble man thrust to greatness."

Read the rest of this entry »

All indicators are that Thursday, October 15th, should be a very, very busy day on the US Mint’s website as well as their telephone order line. At noon (Eastern Time) on that day, the Mint will be releasing the 2009 Lincoln Coin and Chronicles Set for sale to the public.

A few enterprising individuals are already offering the sets for pre-sale on eBay at huge premiums. A quick glance as of this writing shows several auctions in the $170 range, which is an increase of well over $100 from the $55.95 price tag the Mint will be getting.

Even more amazing is the fact that some auctions are over $300 with one listing asking $1000. (See Lincoln Coin & Chronicles Sets on eBay.)

As of yet, closed auctions for the Chronicles Set have stayed between $140-$169, but — and this is pure guesswork at this point — this could change as Thursday comes and goes and collectors are unable to place an order through the Mint.

Only 50,000 of these highly sought after collections will be available and a one-day sellout is not out of the question according to multiple coin enthusiasts. In fact, the Mint has already stated a one-per-household maximum order limit will be enforced. Read the rest of this entry »

It has been the Fall week for commemorative news from the US Mint. On Monday it added the Lincoln Coin & Chronicles Set to its online store in preparation for an Oct. 15 debut, and it just announced next week’s release of the United States Mint Braille Education Set.

The set includes an uncirculated Louis Braille Bicentennial Silver Dollar with special packaging that has genuine Braille text — a first time event for the US Mint, much like the silver dollar is the first ever coin with readable Braille.

The set will be issued Thursday, Oct 8, at noon Eastern Time for a price of $44.95. Sales are limited to a maximum of 25,000 and a further order limit of one (1) per household will be enforced.

These limits invite the question, will the education set sell out? The previously mentioned Lincoln Chronicles Set has a 50,000 max limit. Many expect those will fall to collector demand on the first day of issue. There is supportive reasoning. Lincoln silver dollars sold out earlier in the year to the tune of 325,00 proof and 125,000 uncirculated. That happened in just over six weeks. 50,000 actually had to be held in reserve for the chronicles set.

The story is different for the Louis Braille Silver dollars, which commemorate the 200th anniversary of the his birth. They are still available and have been since March 26, 2009. The latest US Mint sales figures (as of 9/27) show 122,661 proof and 65,716 uncirculated have been purchased by collectors. While very respectable, they are dull compared to the Lincolns. Read the rest of this entry »

The United States Mint introduced the Lincoln Coin and Chronicles Set to its online store on Monday, in preparation for its launch on Oct. 15, 2009, at noon ET.

The much anticipated set includes proof versions of the four 2009 Lincoln Cents and a proof Lincoln Silver Dollar — the same commemorative dollar that sold out earlier this year under the pressure of enormous collector demand.

The Lincoln Coin and Chronicles Set is priced at $55.95, with just 50,000 available to buy. The price is a current steal considering single silver dollars are going for more on the secondary market. (See proof Lincolns Silver Dollars on eBay.)

The 50,000 limit is mandated given the act authorizing the silver dollars permitted a total of 500,000 across both proof and uncirculated options. Collectors already scooped up 325,000 of the proof and 125,000 of the uncirculated Lincoln dollars earlier in the year, forcing the US Mint to halt sales and list the individual coins as "sold out" just six weeks after their launch.

With such anticipation for this offering, the Mint has set an order limit of 1 per household. Even with that in place, many expect the set could sellout on the first day of issuance, leaving many collectors empty-handed. Read the rest of this entry »