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2022 United States Mint Commemorative Coin Programs
By Louis Golino
In late 2021, when the U.S. Mint published its 2022 product schedule, it initially indicated the plan was to launch both of the year's commemorative coin programs – the Negro Leagues Baseball and National Purple Heart Hall of Honor – on January 6. However, the Mint has since updated its plans. As a result, the Purple Heart program has been moved to the TBD, the “To Be Determined” portion of the schedule. The Mint did not indicate the reason for doing this.
Both programs should resonate with collectors because they celebrate two important organizations that have helped shape American society for generations.
A wide range of coins with impressive designs are being issued. Among them include a low mintage set and a limited-edition colorized coin – only the third one ever issued by the Mint after the 2020 Basketball Hall of Fame colorized half dollar and dollar coins.
2022 would have been the first time both annual commemorative coin programs were launched on the same day if the original plans were still in effect.
Negro Leagues Baseball Commemorative Program
The Negro Leagues program is authorized by the Negro Leagues Baseball Centennial Commemorative Coin Act of 2020, which became Public Law 116-209 when President Donald Trump signed it on December 4, 2020. That legislation was initially introduced in the House of Representatives on July 30, 2019, by Rep. Emanuel Cleave (D-MO) and in the Senate the same day by Sen. Roy Blunt (R-MO).
2020 marked the centennial of the legendary Negro Leagues. This professional baseball league was created in response to the fact that African-American baseball players were banned from playing in the major leagues one hundred years ago. The group was established by Andrew' Rube" Foster – an American baseball player, team manager, and executive who was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1981.
In 1920 he convened a meeting of the owners of the independent African-American baseball teams at a YMCA in Kansas City, MO, to form a "league of their own," which became the National Negro Leagues. Later other leagues joined the group, which operated for 40 years. The league was especially notable for introducing fans of the game to the faster, more aggressive style of baseball played by African-American and Hispanic baseball players, showcasing the skills of both groups.
Current Acting Mint Director Ventris Gibson's father was a player in the league.
2022 Negro Baseball League Commemorative Coin Designs
In crafting the legislation for this coin program, the sponsors worked with the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum in Kansas City, which, if the program manages to sell enough coins to cover all costs, will receive the surcharges added to the Mint price of each coin for its education and outreach programs.
$5 Gold Designs
Coins being issued include a $5 gold coin that features a portrait of Foster on its obverse and a facsimile of his signature, plus the standard inscriptions designed by Laurie Musser and sculpted by Phebe Hemphill. The reverse shows the tipping of a player's hat – an expression of recognition or gratitude. That side was designed by Donna Weaver and sculpted by David Custer.
The $5 gold coin will be issued as usual in mint state and proof with a combined maximum authorized mintage of 50,000, including 5,000 three-coin proof sets.
Silver Dollar Designs
Then there is a silver dollar whose obverse features a pitcher throwing a baseball with a baseball's stitching as its border design designed by Matt Swaim and sculpted by David Custer. The reverse shows a player's view of a pitch being delivered to the catcher and was designed by Donald Everhart and sculpted by Craig A. Campbell.
Up to 400,000 of these Silver Dollars in mint state and proof will be made, including 15,000 of the proof dollars that will be sold in a special set paired with a silver medal honoring legendary player Jackie Robinson. The Robinson medal includes inscriptions mentioning his extensive work for social justice and a quote from him about how the impact we have on others matters in what each of us does.
The medal’s design recreates the Robinson congressional gold medal presented to his widow in 2005. It will be 1.5 inches in diameter and contain 0.859 troy ounces of silver. The obverse was designed and engraved by Donna Weaver, who is retired from the Mint and now part of the Artistic Infusion Program (AIP), while the reverse was designed and engraved by John Mercanti, former Chief Engraver.
In addition, a Proof silver dollar with a privy mark for the centennial of the Negro Leagues limited to 20,000 coins will also be issued.
Clad Half Dollar Designs
Finally, up to 400,000 clad half dollars in proof and mint state will be struck that feature an obverse design with a Negro Leagues player up to bat and one of their tour buses designed by Chris Costello and John P. McGraw. The reverse features a group of Negro League players designed by Justin Kuntz and sculpted by Phebe Hemphill.
2022 National Purple Heart Hall of Honor Commemorative Program
On December 22, 2020, President Trump signed into law Public Law 116-247, the National Purple Heart Hall of Honor Commemorative Coin Act, initially introduced by Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney (D-NY) on March 18, 2019.
The program is intended to honor the National Purple Heart Hall of Honor, which started in 2006 and is based in N.Y. state. The organization honors the sacrifices of the estimated 1.8 million American military service members killed or wounded in action since the Civil War. The organization also maintains the Roll of Honor, an interactive database of each of those recipients, and exhibits that highlight the bravery of those servicemembers, while also offering educational programs for schools, camps, and Scout groups.
First proposed in 1995, several veterans, politicians, and others took 11 years of hard work to create the Hall of Honor.
The Purple Heart was first given on April 5, 1917, to those killed or wounded during World War I and was later reauthorized in 1932. The award is bestowed by the U.S. President serving at the time. In 1782 President George Washington established the Badge of Military Merit to honor the commendable actions of enlisted men and non-commissioned officers.
2022 National Purple Heart Hall of Honor Commemorative Coins Designs
Each of the six coins being issued for this poignant institution incorporates an image of the Purple Heart – a medal shaped like a heart that features a left-facing bust of George Washington in uniform against a purple background designed by John Sinnock, the 8th Chief Engraver. In addition, each of these coins was created by a current member of the Artistic Infusion Program (AIP) and sculpted by a medallic artist on the Mint's staff.
$5 Gold Designs
Up to 50,000 $5 gold coins with an obverse that features a different rendition of the Purple Heart medal by Donna Weaver and sculpted by Joseph Menna will be released. The reverse showcases a facsimile of Washington's signature under an image of his Badge of Merit and over a textured stripe.
Silver Dollar Designs
Up to 400,000 proof and mint state silver dollars will be issued. This mintage includes 25,000 Proofs in which the purple color is used to depict the medal that appears on the obverse along with a reverse that shows a WWI nurse bandaging a wounded servicemember. Over 23,000 female nurses served in that war. Both sides were designed by acclaimed sculptor and coin designer Heidi Wastweet and sculpted respectively by David Custer and Craig A. Campbell.
Clad Half Dollars
The clad half dollar, which will be limited to a maximum mintage of 750,000, has an obverse that shows the bottom half of a wounded servicemember using crutches with the medal in the background. The reverse features a silhouette of a Marine in dress blues putting his hand on the shoulder of a young boy holding a Marine dress cap. Both sides were designed by Beth Zaiken and sculpted respectively by Craig A. Campbell and John P. McGraw.
Both 2022 programs continue the tradition in modern American commemorative coins of honoring the military and sports and should be a hit with collectors
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