The United States Mint this week announced the deadline to order Braille Commemorative Silver Dollars.
The legislation authorizing the coins stipulates that they can only be issued "during the 1-year period beginning January 1, 2009." On its online store, the US Mint has posted the following message:
The 2009 Louis Braille Bicentennial Silver Dollar products must be issued by December 31st. In order to meet these requirements, the United States Mint is only accepting orders for these products until December 11th at 5:00 p.m. ET. Please note that all credit card and billing issues must be resolved prior to December 11th.
The coin products referenced in the notice all honor the 200th anniversary of the birth of Louis Braille, inventor of the Braille system for reading and writing by the blind and visually impaired. The four available, along with their prices and latest sales figures as of Sunday, Nov. 1, follow: Read the rest of this entry »
Thanks to gold prices that have consistently fallen under $1,000 an ounce during the last seven days, the United States Mint on Wednesday, the final day in September, cut prices on Ultra High Relief Double Eagles and First Spouse Gold Coins by $50 and $25, respectively.
The declines come exactly one week after the US Mint raised gold coin prices by the same amounts in response to a gold average that had moved above $1,000.
US Mint collector gold coin prices are subject to change weekly based on the the Mint’s pricing policy which links the market price of gold to the selling price for the precious metal coins. The average price for London gold since last Thursday was $997.28. The price fell between $950- $1,000 and dictated coin price updates. Read the rest of this entry »
Commemorating the 40th anniversary of a technological and historically significant event, The Perth Mint has released the First Man On The Moon 2009 Silver Proof ‘Orbital’ Coin. This coin is the fourth of five in a set of releases that are part of the Perth’s Orbit and Beyond series.
The innovative series capitalizes on the Perth’s abilities to create unique pieces. The Orbit and Beyond coins feature an outer ring design that really orbits around the colored image of Earth in the center. Read the rest of this entry »
2009 marks 40 years since the introduction of the UK’s most distinctive circulation coin - the 50p piece.
To mark this defining moment in British currency, The Royal Mint is proud to make available for the very first time a 16-coin silver Proof set celebrating the many commemorative designs to have graced the coin.
The 50p coin replaced the ten-shilling note in 1969, joining the 5p (shilling) and 10p (florin) coins in circulation to leave only the three copper coins to be introduced in February 1971 to complete the new series of decimal coins. While the original reverse featured Christopher Ironside’s traditional Britannia design, the new coin’s equilateral curve heptagon was unequivocally revolutionary as the world’s first seven-sided coin.
Over the last 40 years the 50p coin has celebrated a number of important occasions in British and European history. The new Royal Mint UK 50p Silver Proof Collection showcases the 16 distinctive designs to have appeared on its reverse to date, including the coin’s first ever commemorative design marking the UK’s accesion to the European Economic Community (EEC) in 1973. Read the rest of this entry »
The US Mint in a typical year offers Lincoln proof cents in two coin products. 2009, however, is far from a typical year for the penny given it is the 200th anniversary of Abraham Lincoln’s birth and the 100th anniversary of the Lincoln cent itself.
Not only are there four new one-cent reverse designs this year to celebrate the historical occasions, but there are four different 2009 proof set products that the US Mint has produced for coin collectors.
The proof sets offer varying coin denominations within each, and the included cents are special not just for their four designs but for their unique composition. Unlike the circulating varieties, each proof penny is struck from the same metals as the original 1909 Lincoln bronze cent — 95% copper, 5% tin and zinc.
So which proof set should set a collector buy? Read the rest of this entry »
The United States Mint launched proof versions of the four newly redesigned 2009 Lincoln Cents in a single set on Wednesday, August 26.
The proof sets are priced at $7.95 each, plus shipping and handling, and will be available at noon ET. There is a limit of 5 sets per household.
The one-cent coins celebrate the bicentennial of President Abraham Lincoln’s birth and the 100th anniversary of the first issuance of the Lincoln cent. The sets, therefore, are officially entitled as the 2009 Lincoln Bicentennial One Cent Proof Set.
The reverse of each cent bears a design that represents the four major aspects of Abraham Lincoln’s life: Read the rest of this entry »
The British Royal Mint has released the 2009 UK Britannia Four Coin Silver Proof Set which includes a £2 coin, a £1 coin, a 50p coin and a 20p coin. Making this collection unique is the fact that for the first time an image of Britannia is accompanied by a portrait of the current Queen on a silver proof set.
A mythical figure, Britannia was first introduced on British coins in 1697 when she replaced the walking lion figure traditionally used before that date. She has come to symbolize the strength of Britain.
The reverse or "tails" side of these coins showcase a version of Britannia designed by Philip Nathan, which was used originally for coins in 1997 when the silver proof Britannia family made its debut. It was inspired by the famous 1st century AD warrior queen Boudicca, who was known for leading a daring revolt against the Romans. Read the rest of this entry »
The Royal Mint is delighted to introduce the 2009 Britannia collection, featuring Philip Nathan’s famous 1997 design of Britannia standing tall in her chariot.
His stunning design appears on the reverse, while the current portrait of Her Majesty the Queen takes pride of place on the obverse - the first time that the two designs have appeared alongside each other on a gold coin.
The 2009 collection is the eighth in a series of Britannia commemorative coins to be released since their inception by the Royal Mint in 1987. Unusually for UK gold coins, the Britannia Collection is struck to 22 carat gold Proof quality, but with a small quantity of silver added to the alloy, resulting in a brilliant yellow gold finish. Read the rest of this entry »
The US Mint on Friday launched the 18-coin 2009 Silver Proof Set for $52.95. The annual set is a favorite with collectors, highlighted by the no longer available 2008 Silver Proof Set with sales of 774,874 as of Sunday.
The 2009 set is actually $8 more than last year’s offering, but it also includes an additional silver quarter and four bicentennial 2009 Lincoln cents specially struck in 95% copper, 3% zinc and 2% tin — the same alloy used in the original 1909 penny.
Similar to the fast-selling 2009 clad proof set that was issued by the Mint in June, the silver set contains collector proof versions of circulating 2009 coinage. All coins bear the "S" mint mark denoting they were minted at the United States Mint in San Francisco. Additionally, the dime, half-dollar, and six quarters are struck in lustrous 90 percent silver. The set has an intrinsic silver value of $19.99 at Friday’s silver spot price of $13.16 an ounce. Read the rest of this entry »
With the US Mint announcing the upcoming 2009 US Mint Silver Proof Set launch, coin collectors are reminded of the still available — but for a short time only — 2008 Silver Proof Set.
For marketing focus and to avoid confusion, the US Mint generally ends the sale of prior year proof sets immediately before new year replacements are issued.
The 2009 silver set goes on sale Friday at noon ET so expect the Mint to pull the 2008 set from its online store before then — likely Friday morning.
Demand has been strong for the 14-coin proof offering, although easing of late to around 2,000-3,000 sold per week. In total, collectors have purchased 774,874 sets between its release on Aug. 26, 2008 through to Sunday, July 12. Read the rest of this entry »
