Silver Articles

By Ray James The Walking Liberty Half Dollar is one of the most beloved designs in Twentieth-Century American coinage. The silver half dollar debuted in 1916 and was struck through 1947. The Barber Half Dollar preceded it, and the Franklin Half Dollar followed it as circulating half dollar designs. The silver Walking Liberty Half Dollar was one of the final issues that were part of the "Renaissance of American coinage"—the coinage redesign put into motion by President Theodore Roosevelt in the previous decade.Walking Liberty Silver Half Dollar Design   The Walking Liberty Silver Half Dollar design was brought to fruition by Adolph A. Weinman, the designer of the famous Mercury Dime, which also debuted in 1916. Both designs won a public competition for the selection of new coin designs. Mr. Weinman was a student of famed artist and coin designer Augustus Saint-Gaudens, who was responsible for the iconic Double Eagle Twenty Dollar design.   The obverse design is widely thought…

By Ray James   Collectors around the world have been eagerly anticipating the debut of a brand-new reverse design for the American Silver Eagle series. Celebrating its 35th anniversary in 2021, the series has featured the iconic heraldic eagle reverse design created by John Mercanti, the 12th former Chief Engraver of the United States Mint since it was first issued in1986. The new reverse design was created by Emily Damstra, but who is she and why was her design chosen? Learn more below!Who is Emily Damstra?     Emily Damstra is a freelance artist, science illustrator, coin designer, and medalist. She graduated from the University of Michigan with a Master of Fine Arts (MFA) degree in science illustration. She is part of the U.S. Mint's Artistic Infusion Program (AIP), which includes numerous talented professional American artists who lend their talent to creating stunning coin designs.    Ms. Damstra is a dual citizen of the United States and Canada and has designed…

By Ray James   The United States Mint struck the Winged Liberty Head or "Mercury" Dime design from 1916 until 1945. The Mercury Dime is one of the most collected and beloved American coin series ever struck! This series was preceded by the famous Barber dime and was followed by the Roosevelt dime design, which is still circulating today.     The designer of the Mercury dime was noted American artist Adolph A. Weinman. For more information about Adolph A. Weinman and his many numismatic accomplisments, read this Coin Authority article Mercury Dime Design     The obverse depicts Liberty wearing a winged Phrygian cap. The wings on the cap symbolize "Freedom of Thought." The wing imagery was the design element that caused this depiction of Liberty to be mistaken as a depiction of Mercury, the Roman messenger of the Gods.   The reverse features a fasces ,or ax, and an olive branch.How much is a Mercury Dime worth?    The Mercury dime contains .07234 oz. of actual…

By Louis Golino   Collectors of American Silver Eagles and American Gold Eagles will soon see the release of exciting new versions of 2020-W Silver Eagles and 2020-W Gold Eagles from the United States Mint. These coins will both be struck in proof at the West Point Mint and will be the first coins of both series to feature privy marks, specifically, “V75” privy marks that pay homage to the 75th anniversary of the American-led victory in World War II. What’s more, both coins will feature extremely low mintages with the gold version set to become one of the lowest-mintage modern U.S. coins ever issued!2020 Silver and Gold V75 American Eagles As for the special World War II 75th Anniversary 2020-W Silver Eagle, it will have a very low mintage of 75,000 coins (likely because it is the 75th anniversary), which will make it the third-lowest proof coin in the series after the 2019-S Enhanced Reverse Proof and 1995-W proof. The companion 2020-W Gold Eagle will have an…

By Louis Golino   On April 21, the United States Mint officially unveiled the designs for the 2020 Women’s Suffrage Centennial silver dollar and proof silver medal. Each with feature different designs that were released on August 18th, 2020. The silver dollar was authorized by Public Law 116-71, the Women’s Suffrage Centennial Commemorative Coin Act, which became law on November 25, 2019. The legislation was initially introduced in April of last year in the House of Representatives by Rep. Elise Stefanik (R- N.Y.), while the Senate version was introduced by Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN). The Women’s Suffrage coin and medal mark the centennial of the ratification of the 19th Amendment to the Constitution that gave 27 million women at the time the right to vote (and a much larger number today) – a seminal moment in American history that was made possible by a long and arduous struggle that involved the dedication and sacrifices of many women and men. While full equality for…

By Ray James   Counterfeits are as old as circulating coinage, currency, and the hobby of collecting them. Through the years, various mints around the world have developed coin security features and anti-counterfeiting technologies. These safeguards have been put in place to help collectors and the public have faith the money in their pockets, and that their collections are filled with genuine coins, bullion, and currency.   2021 Silver Eagle Re-design     The most notable development in the last year or so regarding safety features and anti-counterfeiting technology is the upcoming 2021 redesign of the American Silver and Gold Eagle coinage which will debut at some point in mid-2021. The United States. Mint has confirmed that with their redesign of these iconic coins, an undisclosed amount of coin security features will be incorporated. At this point, the nature of these U.S. Mint security features or the exact design they anticipate using have not been disclosed, but this…

By Louis Golino   On June 4, 2020, the United States Mint will launch its Basketball Hall of Fame commemorative coin program which is being issued to mark the 60th anniversary of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield, Massachusetts. The coins will include clad half dollars, silver dollars and $5 gold coins, including some special, limited issue versions and the first colorized coins to ever be released by the Mint-- all struck in a domed shape so that they physically resemble a basketball. Shop All Basketball Commemoratives Now A Brief Overview of the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame The Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame is a museum and hall of fame that recognizes and honors the greatest players alongside other important figures in the very popular sport of basketball. The Hall of Fame promotes interest in basketball while working to preserve the game’s rich history. It is named for James Naismith, a Canadian American physician who taught…

By Louis Golino   Following the success of the five 2019 West Point national parks quarters last year, which helped increase interest in collecting coins from circulation, the U.S. Mint has announced that it will issue 2020 quarters with a “W” mint mark. However, this year something special is being added to those five limited-issue U.S. Mint quarters – a special V75 privy mark on the obverse. The privy mark, which is part of the master die for the coins, reads “V75” within an outline of the rainbow pool of the National World War II Memorial in Washington, DC and denotes the 75th anniversary of the allied victory in World War II. It will appear to the left of President Washington’s profile in the center of the left side of the obverse. While these are the second U.S. coins to feature a privy mark after the American Innovation dollars, they will be the first United States Mint quarters to sport a privy mark. Privy marks historically have been grouped with mint marks…

By Louis Golino Towards the end of the summer of 2019, with little fanfare the United States Mint added a product to its product schedule, a second 2019-dated Enhanced Reverse Proof American Silver Eagle following the one issued on July 3 as part of the U.S.-Canada Pride of Two Nations set. That set included a 2019-W Enhanced Reverse Proof Silver Eagle – the first coin ever issued with that finish, which has “the same frosted background as a standard Reverse Proof, but different design element finishes.” In particular, the Enhanced Reverse Proof “has the same frosted background as a reverse proof coin, but what sets it apart are the multiple polished and frosted finishes applied to different isolated design elements. The selective polishing and frosting dramatically enhances the visual impact of the design,” according to the United States Mint. When the U.S Mint first added the second coin of this type to its schedule slated for a November 14 release, collectors did not…

By Sean McConeghy The Royal Canadian Mint's Peace Dollar Updated 11/12/2020 World War I was one of the bloodiest conflicts in human history. It also happened to be among the first wars that was brought home to those not on the frontlines through photos and videos. The entire world celebrated peace when it finally ended. The U.S Mint got in on the festivities with Anthony de Francisci’s Peace Dollar, which made its debut in 1921. 99 years later, Canada issued a Peace Dollar of its own that was inspired by de Francisci’s design. The first Canada Peace Dollar followed the 2019 Peace and Liberty medal on which the Royal Canadian Mint (RCM) collaborated with former U.S Mint Chief Engraver, John Mercanti. Celebrating values cherished by the two countries, it consisted of a Peace design by retired RCM Senior Engraver Susan Taylor and a Liberty design by Mercanti. Following the Peace and Liberty Medal, the RCM released the first-ever 2020 Canada Peace Dollar in the fall of 2019. …