2007 September : Coin Guide

1793 Chain Cent - Ameri. Reverse

By CoinLink on Sunday, September 23, 2007
Filed Under: US Type Coins

Photos used with permission and courtesy of Heritage Auction Galleries

Description:

Considered the first Chain cent produced, and struck between February 27th and March 12th, 1793, the first coinage of the fledgling United States Mint after the facility was ready for operations.

Sheldon-1 The abbreviated legend on the reverse almost certainly represents a layout problem that resulted from the engraver’s inexperience. Presumably, the engraver laid out AMERICA last, and realized that the legend would appear unbalanced unless the nation’s name was abbreviated.

In his Encyclopedia of United States Large Cents, Walter Breen commented upon the belief of some who suggested that the abbreviated legend was “deliberate symbolism, after the style of the Masonic Unfinished Pyramid on the reverse of the Great Seal.”

The unique reverse legend identifies this variety as the first Cent issue struck at the first Philadelphia Mint. AMERICA is spelled out in full on the only other known Chain Cent reverse die, used to strike Sheldon-2, 3, 4, and NC-1.

Specifications:

Designer: attributed to Henry Voight
Mintage: Estimated between 5-10,000
Denomintion: One cent
Diameter: ±27 millimeters
Metal content: Copper - 100%
Weight: ±208 grains (±13.5 grams)

Additional Resources :

Last Updated : 09/22/2007

US Mint American Buffalo 24-Karat Gold Coin

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By CoinLink on Saturday, September 15, 2007
Filed Under: Bullion Coins, US Type Coins

Photos and Copy courtesy of the United States Mint

American Buffalo Gold Bullion Coins are the first .9999 fine 24-karat gold coins ever struck by the United States Mint. Production of these coins is authorized by Public Law 109-145, dated December 22, 2005, also known as the Presidential $1 Coin Act of 2005. The new American Buffalo Gold coin’s obverse and reverse designs feature images

The Native American depiction on the coins obverse is believed to be based on three different American Indians. Two of the American Indians who modeled for Fraser as he sculpted the coin were named by the designer before his death. They were known as Chief Iron Tail of the Lakota Sioux and Chief Two Moons of the Cheyenne. Although many have claimed to have had a sitting with Fraser for this design, he could not recall the name of the third person and satisfactory documentation has not yet been found to identify that individual.

It is widely believed that the bison on the coins reverse was modeled after Black Diamond, a popular attraction at the New York Zoological Gardens.

The Presidential $1 Coin Act of 2005 mandated the production of the American Buffalo Gold Coin. Both the American Buffalo Gold Bullion and Proof Coins portray the images of the revered Buffalo Nickel of 1913, Type 1. Originally prepared by noted American sculptor James Earle FraserJames Earle Fraser, once a student of Augustus Saint-Gaudens, for America’s 5-cent coin (nickel), the iconic James Earle Fraser image of an American bison graces the reverse (tails side), and Fraser’s classic design of an American Indian is featured on the obverse (heads side). That popular coin, known as the Indian Head, or Buffalo, nickel was introduced in 1913 and showcases the native beauty of the American West.

The American Buffalo Gold Coin has inscriptions of the coin’s weight, denomination and gold content incused on the reverse (Buffalo side) in the design area commonly known as the “grassy mound.” The inscriptions read “$50,” “1 OZ” and “.9999 FINE GOLD.” The proof version will bear the W mint mark of the United States Mint at West Point, New York. .