The United States Mint on Thursday issued collector proof an uncirculated 2009 Margaret Taylor First Spouse Gold Coins for the respective prices of $754 and $741. The coins are the thirteenth in a series of commemoratives designed to honor former first ladies of the United States.
Margaret Taylor First Spouse Gold Coins, Proof and Uncirculated Options - Click to Enlarge
The coins for Margaret Taylor feature a portrait of her on the obverse (heads side) that was designed by Phebe Hemphill and sculpted by Charles L. Vickers. The reverse (tails side) was designed by Mary Beth Zeitz and sculpted by Jim Licaretz. It features a younger Margaret providing comfort to a wounded soldier while her husband was engaged in the Seminole War.
Each contains 1/2 ounces of 24-karat, .9999 fine gold, includes the "W" mint mark denoting their production at the US Mint facility in West Point, and has a face value of $10.
Orders for Margaret Taylor First Spouse Gold Coins open beginning at Noon (Eastern) on December 3, 2009, the US Mint announced Wednesday. The Taylor...
Late this morning, the US Mint stopped selling Jackson's Liberty First Spouse Gold Uncirculated Coins and 2009 Lincoln Cent Formative Years Two-Roll sets....
At 12 Noon (Eastern) today, the United States Mint launched the Sarah Polk First Spouse Gold Coins. Struck from 24-carat gold, these commemoratives honor Sarah who served as First Lady to James Polk, eleventh President of the United States.
Marking the twelfth design in the series of First Spouse coins, the Polk coins are available in either proof or uncirculated condition. The proof will start selling for $654 with the uncirculated available for $641.
These prices are subject to change weekly based on the Mint's pricing policy which links the market price of gold to the selling price for the precious metal coins. (For more information, see First Spouse Coins Price Grid.) A bronze medal in the likeness of the Sarah Polk gold coins will also be available for $3.50.
Sarah Polk First Spouse Gold Coins launch Thursday morning at 12:00 noon ET. Before then, expect the uncirculated Jackson's Liberty First Spouse Gold Coin to go off sale. Why? US Mint practice with the gold series has been to discontinue the oldest offering immediately before launching the newest issue.
While that likelihood is exceptionally strong, it is not a 100% certainty. Take for example the Jackson's Liberty proof sell out in mid August. The proof coin did not reach its maximum mintage, yet the Mint placed it in their "sold out" category weeks prior to the upcoming Sarah Polk coin debut. Mint practice can be fluid.
In a side note, the unexpected move proved to be a shot in the arm for the remaining coin. Uncirculated Jackson's Liberty sales spiked the following week, rising 261 compared to the previous 34. These are not exactly blazing sales figures for US Mint coins. But they are rather impressive for the First Spouse Gold Coins series where many mintage figures will likely be considered scarce years from now.