Week Twenty-Four

 

Coin of the Week: Capped Bust Half Dollar

Designed by U.S. Mint engraver William Kneass, the Capped Bust Half Dollar shared a uniform design with the dime and quarter of the same period. It was minted from 1807 to 1839, with a few minor modifications along the way. The design shows a depiction of Lady Liberty sporting a nice cap. A similar design was used on the gold coins of the time as well, although these coins show only the head of Lady Liberty.

Capped Bust Half Dollar

 

Capped Bust Half Eagle

The first coin struck at any branch mint of the U.S.A. was a 1939-O (New Orleans) mint Capped Bust Half Dollar, worth thousands of dollars today.

1839-O Half Dollar

 

 

Coin News: Kennedy Silver Coin Set to be released

The long awaited 4-coin silver Kennedy Set will be released by the U.S. Mint on October 28th. This set features 4 specially made Kennedy Half Dollars, one from each branch of the mint, and each with it’s own special finish.

The set will be available at 12:00 am Eastern Standard Time on the 28th, selling for $99.95+$4.95 s/h.

Week Twenty-Three

 

Coin of the Week/Cool Commemoratives: Goddesses on American Coinage

Americans, and indeed, the world, have often used goddesses to illustrate freedom, liberty, peace, and several other ideals. These goddesses can be portrayed in almost any way. Most of the time, they are portrayed as beautiful young women, sometimes accompanied by a flag, or an infant, or some other representation. This blog post will explain the goddesses shown on United States commemorative coins.

LADY COLUMBIA

Lady Columbia was the first goddess to grace American coins. She appeared on the 1915 Pan-Pacific Exposition Half Dollar, opening a golden gate with an infant behind her, and the same year's Quarter Eagle ($2.50 gold) riding a mythical Hippocampus.

One other coin that I think she appears on is the Monroe Doctrine Centennial Half Dollar. Two goddesses appear on the reverse, and they form the shape of the Americas. But to be perfectly honest, I really don't know if they represent Lady Columbia.

MINERVA (ATHENA)

Minerva also debuted in 1915, featured on the obverses of the two $50 gold pieces, and made her second appearance on the California Expo Half Dollar.

Her hand appears on the obverse of the 2000 Library of Congress bi-metal $10.

LADY LIBERTY

Lady Liberty was the first subject on the first coin of the United States. But she did not appear on a commemorative coin until 1926, the sesquicentennial (150) of the United States, when she graced the obverse of the sesquicentennial Quarter Eagle.

Since then, she has made at least five other appearances: on the Lynchburg, VA Sesquicentennial Half Dollar,

on the 2012 Star-Spangled Banner $1,

and the 1986 Statue of Liberty coins (Half Dollar, Silver Dollar, Gold $5 Half Eagle).

Lady Liberty appears on several formerly circulating United States coinage as well, and the many depictions of her from around the world seem rather similar to those of the United States.

OTHERS: LADIES JUSTICE, FREEDOM, AND KNOWLEDGE

These goddesses are not as familiar to most people. Every good coin collector knows about Lady Liberty and Minerva, but these three, Justice, Freedom, and Knowledge are slightly more quirky, as they have never appeared on particularly famous commemorative coins or circulating coinage. All three of these goddesses appear on only one or two coins apiece:

Justice appears on the Columbia, South Carolina sesquicentennial Half Dollar, as a slightly aged woman holding a set of scales.

Freedom shows up on the 1989 Congress bicentennial Half Dollar and Silver Dollar, shown as the statue of the same name atop the Capitol Building in Washington D.C.

Knowledge debuts on the 1996 Smithsonian Silver Dollar reverse, seated on the globe and holding a torch.

 

 

Rooting Through the Lost Art: Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Maryland State Quarters

Connecticut:

Original:

Other Designs:

 

Massachusetts:

Original:

Other Designs:

Maryland:

Original:

Other Designs:

Week Twenty-Two

 

Coin of the Week: Confederate Cent

The short-lived Confederate States of America were short on cash. They had used up the silver supply, and were now down to only copper. What would happen now?

A man by the name of Robert Lovett Jr. was tasked with creating a design for Confederate Cents, which he did. A beautiful design featuring Minerva on the obverse and a wreath of corn, cotton and tobacco plastered on the reverse. Lovett got scared and chickened out, but not before at least 14 test pieces were made. The world would probably have never known about these pieces had Lovett not accidentally spent one in a tavern.  After the civil war, Lovett was continually badgered by a collector to give up the dies by a collector until he agreed to do so. The dies were then used to create restrikes, several of which exist today. An original Confederate cent can cost thousands of dollars.

 

 

Roughly Actual size (Above), 19mm

 

 

 

Rooting Through the Lost Art: New Jersey and Georgia State Quarters

First the originals:

And now the runners-up:

 

 

 

 

 

 

Wonderful World: Canada MapleGram 25 Set

The Royal Canadian Mint has recently released this product, which is made to be more appealing to first time gold investors. The MapleGram 25 contains 25 1-gram gold maple leaves, each made with 99.99% gold, and available for $1,108.99 on Kitco.com. The maple leaves are actually quite cute, and I am hoping to get a set myself!

 

The link below will take you to a short video showing off the product.

MapleGram25 Includes 25 Gold Maple Leaf Coins i...