The bimetallic Golden Eagle commemorative coin is now available from the Federal Mint Swissmint. The Golden Eagle coin is the second of four commemoratives released within the 4-year "Swiss National Park" commemorative series.

The design of the new coin portrays an eagle with wings spread, claws extended and body powerfully positioned to land. While the design by scientific illustrator Niklaus Heeb is majestic, the bimetallic composition of the coin is also intriguing.

The outer ring of the coin is made of aluminum-bronze and the inner core from copper-nickel. The eagles wings spreads through both outer ring and inner core, highlighting its landing approach.

The Mints selection of the golden eagle design is aptly understood by reading their description of the bird of prey.

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A new House bill is on the legislative table that would honor Ronald Reagan on the anniversary of his 100th birthday. Reagan was born February 6, 1911 and was the 40th President of the United States from 1981-1989.

The bill, H.R. 5235 and titled ‘Ronald Reagan Centennial Commission Act‘, was written to create a 11 member commission with the main duties of planning, developing and carrying out activities that would honor Reagan’s birthday anniversary in 2011.

There are no firm plans set out in the proposed legislation. That would be up to the commissioners. However, it is interesting to note the specific clause for a new commemorative $1 coin.

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An 1880 Japanese gold coin with a face value of ¥2 was expected to sell for millions when auctioned by Japan’s Finance Ministry. An article last Tuesday about the coin in The Japan Times Online said everything in its title, Ministry hopes 1880 ¥2 coin fetches 10 million times that. ¥20 million was the expected take.

Not bad for a small coin that is 16.97 mm in diameter and weighs 3.33 grams.

A noted coin dealer in Tokyo’s Ginza district, Toshio Takeuchi, chairman of Ginza Coins Co., was quoted as saying:

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New Presidential $1 Coins are certainly a hit with many collectors, but their acceptance elsewhere since they were first introduced in 2007 has been slow.

Frightening slow… and very similar to previous failed attempts at thrusting dollar coins into the publics hands.

Like the Susan B. Anthony and Sacagawea golden dollars, Presidential $1 coins face a daunting and nearly impossible task of competing with the one dollar bill.

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The trend of a busy opening day continued at the February 14 – 16, 2008 Long Beach Coin, Stamp & Collectibles Expo.  Total attendance for the three-day show, including dealers and the general public, was 5,206, according to Ronald J. Gillio, Expo General Chairman.

“We’ve seen this developing trend the past few years with strong attendance on Thursdays when the show opens to the public.  There are serious collectors who apparently don’t want to miss anything,” said Gillio.

Highlights of the February Long Beach Expo included a $25 million auction conducted by Heritage Auction Galleries of Dallas, Texas, with international news coverage of the $10.7 million portion of the Walter J. Husak collection of early American large cents.

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On Tuesday, February 5, 2008, President Bush signed into law H.R. 3432 titled, “Commission on the Abolition of the Transatlantic Slave Trade Act.”

The law establishes a commission to plan activities commemorating the 200th anniversary of the abolition of the transatlantic slave trade. One of those activities is planning efforts for a new commemorative coin.

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The British Royal Mint has released a new 2008 commemorative £5 coin celebrating the 60th birthday of His Royal Highness, The Prince of Wales. The limited edition coin comes in Brilliant Uncirculated and Proof versions. The commemorative design is rather unusual in that both sides of the coin bear a prominent head portrait, making it a "two-headed" coin.

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The Royal Australian Mint has announced the start of the 2008 Polar Series coins, which mark the 4th International Polar Year - a large scientific programme focused on the Arctic and the Antarctic.

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The 2008 American Buffalo Coin is now available for purchase from the U.S. Mint. The coin is the first from a new program titled, the United States Mint Celebration Series.

The program will offer several coin products that are packaged and released to celebrate special gift-giving occasions and events.

The American Buffalo 2008 coin celebrates the 2008 Lunar New Year – a traditionally important gift-giving time of year for Asian-Americans. It contains one ounce of 24-karat, .9999 fine gold.

A Mint statement regarding the American Buffalo celebration coin said:

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Archaeologists don’t expect to find gold in the middle of a downtown city, but that’s exactly what they did find.

Main Plaza is the historical center of downtown San Antonio. Texan construction crews have been working in the area for months in revitalization efforts for the Main Plaza Redevelopment Project. The area is the oldest part of San Antonio and designated a historical site.

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