CoinNews

The British Royal Mint has announced the sale of individual proof £1 gold, silver and Piedfort silver coins featuring Welsh graphic designer Matthew Dent's rendition of the heraldic shield of the Royal Arms — only the third coin reverse version since 1983.

The coins have an extremely low mintage with the 22 carat gold piece limited to just 1,000 and each .925 sterling silver coin set to only 5,000.

Collectors may purchase the gold, silver and Piedfort silver proof coins for £425, £49.95 and £29.95, respectively. (See International Currency Converter.)

The Piedfort £1 is unique in that it's twice the weight and double the thickness of its circulating counterpart. While it has the same 22.5 mm diameter as the non Piedfort silver proof, its weight is doubled at 19 grams.

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The United States Mint on Wednesday introduced newly designed 2009 Presidential $1 coins and released detailed artist images of the dollars. The American public will see 2009 circulating coins honoring Presidents William Henry Harrison, John Tyler, James K. Polk and Zachary Taylor. Most interestingly, different design elements have been implemented compared to the initial series of 2007 and 2008 coins.

Notable in the new designs is the placement of "In God We Trust," which in past years has been on the edge of each Presidential dollar. A public outcry occurred when the U.S. Mint inadvertently issued a small subset of 2007 dollars that did not have the inscription because of minting errors. Also, while many thought edge letterings on coins would be a fresh approach, fewer liked "In God We Trust" there after seeing the new dollars. They felt the inscription lacked prominence, and needed to be moved.

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The United States Mint halted production and will no longer ship 2008 one-half ounce and one-quarter ounce American Eagle gold coins to authorized dealers, it was announced Monday. Additional gold and platinum coins will be halted when their blank inventories are depleted.

"Due to the extreme fluctuating market conditions for 2008, as well as current market conditions, gold and silver demand is unprecedented and the demand for platinum is unusually high," the U.S. Mint said in a memorandum.

"The U.S. Mint has worked diligently to attempt to meet demand, however, blank supplies are very limited and it is necessary for the U.S. Mint to focus remaining bullion production primarily on American Eagle Gold one-ounce and Silver one-ounce coins," the Mint said.

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