We travel to new territory with the United States Mint as it releases its first ever coins with applied color. Debuting today from the U.S. Mint are colorized 2020 Basketball Hall of Fame Commemorative Coins.
The two dome-shaped coins issued in recognition of the 60th Anniversary of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame go on sale beginning at Noon ET. Their non-colorized counterparts launched earlier this year.
Never before has the Mint released colorized coins, although the genre has been a staple of other world mints for quite some time.
Colorized Basketball Hall of Fame Coin Designs
Appearing on the common obverse (heads side) of each coin is a glimpse of a basketball game in action. Three players are shown reaching for the ball with a rim and net shown behind. Justin Kunz created the design and Michael Gaudioso sculpted its. Obverse inscriptions read "LIBERTY," "IN GOD WE TRUST," and "2020."
Created by Donna Weaver and sculpted by Phebe Hemphill, coin reverses (tails side) depict a basketball about to pass through the net.
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As described by the Mint:
"The reverse design of the colorized silver dollar depicts a basketball with black seams about to pass through a white net, with its rim rendered in a familiar orange hue associated with the sport and the Hall of Fame."
"The reverse design of the colorized half dollar depicts an orange basketball with black seams about to pass through a white net, with the basketball and net’s rim rendered in two distinct shades of the familiar orange hue associated with the sport and the Hall of Fame."
Reverse inscriptions include "UNITED STATES OF AMERICA" and "E PLURIBUS UNUM" along with "ONE DOLLAR" on the silver dollar and "HALF DOLLAR" on the clad half dollar.
These same designs appear on the non-colorized versions of the coins.
Colorized Basketball Coin Specifications
| Denomination: | Dollar | Half Dollar |
| Finish: | Colorized | Colorized |
| Composition: | 99.9% Silver | 8.33% Nickel, Balance Copper |
| Weight: | 26.730 grams | 11.340 grams |
| Diameter: | 1.500 inches | 1.205 inches |
| Overall Height: | 0.243 inch | 0.123 inch |
| Edge: | Reeded | Reeded |
| Mint and Mint Mark: | Philadelphia – P | San Francisco – S |
Pricing, Mintage and Limits
The Philadelphia Mint-struck silver dollar is priced at $95 and the San Francisco Mint-struck half dollar is listed at $55.
Mintage is established at 75,000 coins for each denomination.
Orders are limited to two coins per household for each product option for the first 24 hours of sales.
Surcharges for Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame
Coin prices include surcharges — $10 for the silver dollar and $5 half dollar. Provided the coins turn a profit, proceeds from these surcharges are to be paid to Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame to fund an endowment that will enable increased operations and educational programming of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
These surcharges were mandated by Congress under the same legislation which allowed for the coins to be minted.
Ordering
Both 2020 Colorized Basketball Hall of Fame Coins may be ordered directly from the United States Mint beginning at Noon ET via its webpage dedicated to commemorative products.
