Photos used with permission and courtesy of US Mint

The United States Mint will mint and issue proof and uncirculated versions of the Bald Eagle Coins in a $5 gold coin, a $1 silver coin, and a half-dollar clad coin. The obverse of the $5 gold coin was designed by Artistic Infusion Program (AIP) Master Designer Susan Gamble and sculpted by United States Mint Medallic Sculptor Phebe Hemphill. The design depicts young eaglets perched on a branch in their natural habitat. The coin’s reverse, sculpted by United States Mint Sculptor-Engraver Don Everhart, depicts an image of the current Great Seal of the United States as engraved in 1903.

Photos used with permission and courtesy of US Mint

The obverse of the $1 silver coin, designed by AIP Master Designer Joel Iskowitz and sculpted by United States Mint Sculptor-Engraver Don Everhart, depicts a mature eagle soaring majestically through the sky. The coin’s reverse, sculpted by United States Mint Medallic Sculptor Jim Licaretz, is based on a replica of the first Great Seal of the United States used between 1782 and 1841.

Photos used with permission and courtesy of US Mint

The obverse of the half-dollar clad coin, designed by Susan Gamble and executed by United States Mint Medallic Sculptor Joseph Menna, depicts baby eaglets at about two to three days old, settled in a nest with an unhatched egg. AIP Associate Designer Donna Weaver designed the coin’s obverse, which features the legendary Bald Eagle “Challenger” with the American flag in the background. The design was executed by United States Mint Sculptor-Engraver Charles Vickers.

Mintage across each product option is limited to 100,000 for the $5 gold coin, 500,000 for the $1 silver coin and 750,000 for the clad half-dollar. Surcharges collected from 2008 American Bald Eagle Commemorative Coin Program sales, expected to begin on January 15, 2008, are authorized to be paid to the American Eagle Foundation of Tennessee to continue its works.

The Bald Eagle, unique to North America, was designated America’s national emblem by the Founding Fathers on June 20, 1782, at the Second Continental Congress. Once threatened with possible extinction in the lower 48 states, the Bald Eagle was classified as an endangered species under the Endangered Species Act of 1973. Because of the success of numerous concerted recovery efforts, the Bald Eagle was removed from the Endangered Species List in 2007.

Photos used with permission and courtesy of Heritage Auction Galleries

Like the 1892-1893 Columbian Half Dollar, the Isabella Quarter was produced to help raise funds for the World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago. The lobbying party for this Quarter was the Exposition’s Board of Lady Managers, and the design was executed by Charles E. Barber. A rendition of Isabella of Castilla, Queen of Spain and the patron of Christopher Columbus, dominates the obverse. The reverse depicts a fictitious woman kneeling with a distaff and spindle–a symbol of woman’s industry. Survivors of the 24,214 business strikes distributed are difficult to locate in grades above the MS64 level of preservation, and are rarely offered finer than MS66.

The Isabella quarter was minted exclusively at the Philadelphia Mint.

Minting started on June 13, 1893, six weeks after the opening of the Exposition. There were 40,000 quarters minted but they did not sell well at the Exposition. Ultimately the unsold quarters were returned to the Mint for melting, leaving 24,191 coins.

There is disagreement among experts on the amount of proof strikes. Estimates range from 40 to 100. The 400th, 1,492nd and 1,892nd coins were double struck proofs documented by the Mint which were presented to the Board of Lady Managers. These were in recognition of the 400th anniversary of the discovering of America, the year America was discovered, and the year of the anniversary. Some early business strikes exhibit prooflike qualities, however there must be evidence of multiple strikes to be authenticated as a legitimate proof strike.

Background information the Isabella Quarter is presented from an excellent article written by Frank F. Hanisco for BellaOnline, below:

“By 1890, Susan B. Anthony was lecturing throughout the country on behalf of the National American Woman Suffrage Association. At the same time, Bertha Honoré Palmer, the wife of Potter Palmer of the Palmer House in Chicago, was focusing her attentions on improving the education and economic status of women, and was backing the ideological principle of equal pay for equal work. Susan B. Anthony saw the World’s Columbian Exposition as a stage upon which women could have an active voice in the administration and presentation of exhibits dealing with women’s interests. She enthusiastically petitioned both the U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate for a ‘Board of Lady Managers’ to oversee women’s activities at the fair. Congress approved funding for a Women’s Building and related expenses, and Bertha Honoré Palmer was appointed as president of the ‘Board of Lady Managers.’

Since construction for the fair was behind schedule, and the exposition’s opening was postponed until 1893, Mrs. Palmer used this opportunity to travel abroad to generate interest in the fair, and her international connections proved to be extremely successful. Not only did she secure a place at the fair to build the Women’s Building, designed by a woman architect, which was to house works by and about women, but she also managed to persuade some of Europe’s royal women to lend display materials, and she secured space in each state building to include exhibits of female interest.

Bertha Honoré Palmer then turned her attention to Congress’ Appropriations Committee. Following the lead of the souvenir Columbian Exposition commemorative half-dollar, to be produced to celebrate the 400th anniversary of the discovery of America, Mrs. Potter lobbied and procured funding in the form of 40,000 commemorative quarters. In keeping with the female theme, she insisted on a female effigy on the coin, and what could be more fitting then Columbus’ benefactor, Queen Isabella of Spain.

In March 1893, the Mint Director Edward O. Leech informed the ‘Board of Lady Managers,’ that they needed to forward the likeness of Queen Isabella to be used on the commemorative quarter. In this way, it would save both time and money in production. Having some idea of the politics within government, it has been reported that Susan B. Anthony advised Mrs. Palmer to ignore the Mint Director’s request and to pursue the commemorative quarter through normal channels. Bertha Palmer wanted to keep with an all female input into the design, and selected a New York artist, and student of the famed sculptor, Augustus St.Gaudens, by the name of Caroline Peddle to create the design. This action greatly offended the Chief Engraver, Charles Barber, and all chances for approval of Peddle’s design was quashed. Charles Barber chose artist Kenyon Cox, who had painted several murals and illustrations at the exposition, to prepare sketches from which Barber personally created models and dies for the new quarter.”

The Isabella Quarters were sold as souvenirs for $1.00 each at the Women’s Building on the fair grounds. An estimated 27.5 million visitors attended the World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago, however only a small quantity of the quarters sold. 15,809 pieces were returned to the mint for melting.

Specifications:
Design: Charles E. Barber
Mintage: 24,191
Diameter: 24.3mm
Weight: 6.25gr.
Composition: .900 silver, .100 copper

Additional Resources :

Interesting Facts: The Isabella Quarter was the first U.S. coin to feature the portrait of an actual female and the first commemorative quarter. It is also the only U.S. coin to feature a woman on both sides of the coin.

Photos used with permission and courtesy of Heritage Auction Galleries

Based on Article by Lee Gast

As the first commemorative Half Dollar struck, the Columbian half holds a special place in the long and historic commemorative series. From the first proof striking that sold for $10,000 in 1892,(The first specimen struck was bought for $10,000 by the firm that made Remington typewriters, as a publicity stunt) and to the final 1893 business strike, Columbian Halves were popularly collected at the time and in the hundred years since.

In August 1892 Congress specially authorized the coinage of 5 million half dollars for sale during the 1892 World’s Columbian Exposition to honor the 400th anniversary of Columbus “discovery” of the New World. This was the first of the great World’s Fairs to be honored with a commemorative coins. The first issue was dated 1892. The Exposition was scheduled to open in Chicago in October 1892, but did not open until May 1893, at which time additional coins bearing this new date were struck.

The obverse features the bust right of Christopher Columbus. The coin was originally supposed to be made by U.S.J. Dunbar. His design was based on a portrait painted by Lorenzo Lotto of Columbus in 1512. The U.S. Mint’s Chief Engraver at the time, Charles E. Barber, derailed any attempt by Dunbar from producing the coin, and instead took on the project, basing his depiction of Columbus allegedly on a bust made by artist Olin L. Warner.

Barber clashed with Exposition officials over the reverse as well, favoring his own design of the Western Hemisphere covering the entire reverse. Exposition officials wanted a depiction of Columbus’ flag ship the Santa Maria poised over two globes. Seeking to absolve himself of the argument, Barber delegated the task to his Assistant Engraver, George T. Morgan to design the reverse.

By the time a further quantity had been coined in 1893, public demand for the commemorative had lessened. An unknown quantity of half-dollars were used as collateral against loans made to the Exposition by banks. When the Exposition failed to repay the debits, the banks dumped the coins into circulation.

A mere 104 proofs are believed to have been struck of the 1892 Columbian half dollar, represented by the first 101 coins produced in addition to the 400th, 1492nd, and 1892nd pieces. Despite the significance of Columbian Exposition halves, proof strikings have been largely overlooked and were often mishandled by recipients, most likely dignitaries of the exposition and perhaps a few higher-ups in Washington D.C.

1892 Issue:The first half dollar was struck at the Philadelphia Mint in November 1892. A total of 950,000 coins were minted there, with an unknown number reserved for assay. It is believed that none were melted. They were distributed by the World’s Columbian Exposition and Chicago banks, which sold them for $1 each.

1893 Issue: The Philadelphia Mint began production of 1893-dated Columbian Commemorative Halves on January 3 of that year. A grand total of 4,052,105 pieces were produced (including 2,105 coins for assay purposes), but sales were nowhere near the levels hoped for by government officials. The Mint destroyed all of the unsold coins. That amounted to 2,501,700 coins which were melted.

We note that some of the examples that managed to avoid melting were placed into circulation. Even so, the 1893 Columbian is not a rare coin in the lower and middle Mint State grades. It is only above the Gem level that this issue assumes an aura of unquestionable rarity.

About the Exposition Itself:

Origins of the World’s Columbian Exposition can be seen in the 1876 Centennial Exhibition in Philadelphia. The Philadelphia event marked the first large-scale effort of this kind in the United States. As early as 1880, advocates argues that a special exposition should mark the 400th anniversary of Columbus sailing to the New World. By 1888, the movement gained enough momentum to begin being taken seriously by the public, and by government officials. Early on, St. Louis was a leader for the site location.

By 1889, public opinion and individual efforts had mobilized enough support to launch the new exposition. Contenders for the massive exposition site included St. Louis, Chicago, New York, and Washington, D. C. In an effort to woo the U. S. Congress to select their city, Chicago businesses raised $5,000,000 to pledge to the fair, and promised to double the amount if Chicago was selected. After eight ballots, Congress finally selected Chicago as the site, by a vote of 157 for Chicago, 107 for New York, 25 for St. Louis, and 18 for Washington, D. C. The fair was considered the greatest event of its kind in history.

Specifications:
Design: Obverse by Charles E. Barber; reverse by George T. Morgan; the designs taken from plaster models by Olin L. Warner.
Mintage: Quantity Authorized: 5,000,000
Quantity Distributed: 1892: 950,000; 1893: 1,550,405
Diameter: 30.6mm
Weight: 12.50gr.
Composition: .900 silver, .100 copper

Republished with permission from the Author – Lee Gast

Additional Resources :

Interesting Facts: The first specimen struck was bought for $10,000 by the firm that made Remington typewriters, as a publicity stunt. The 1892-1893 columbian half dollar was the first U.S. legal tender coin to bear the portrait of a foreigner.

Last Updated : 10/28/2007

Photos used with permission and courtesy of Heritage Auction Galleries

By Lee Gast

The renowned 18th-century French nobleman, the Marquis de Lafayette, has occupied a special place in the hearts of Americans for over 200 years. Born in 1757 to wealth and privilege, at the age of twenty he willingly sacrificed all in support of the American revolutionary cause. Defying his family and the French authorities, in 1777 he crossed the Atlantic with about a dozen men to offer his services to the Continental Reverse diagnostics as follows:Congress. With the assistance of Benjamin Franklin, then ambassador to France, Lafayette secured a commission as a Major General in the Continental Army. Serving bravely and unfailingly at Brandywine, Valley Forge and Yorktown, Lafayette soon formed a singular relationship with his Commander in Chief, General George Washing-ton. The two men achieved a lasting bond usually reserved for a father and son.

Lafayette’s Revolutionary War exploits and his effort in inducing the French government to sign a treaty of alliance with the colonies in 1778 earned him enduring fame and respect on both sides of the Atlantic. In 1784, the State of Maryland bestowed citizenship upon Lafayette and his descendants (one descendant invoked this privilege in 1934), and in 1824, while on a grand tour of the United States accompanied by his son George Washington Lafayette, Congress bestowed on him the ultimate American gift for a retired hero—land in Florida and $200,000 in cash. America’s friendship with France would remain steadfast from that time forward, and in 1886, France expressed the depth of this special relationship with its gift to the United States of the Statue of Liberty.

When the United States was invited to participate in the Paris Exposition of 1900, Lafayette was still very much a part of the American psyche. The U.S. thought a fitting contribution would be a monument to the Revolutionary War hero for the city of Paris. It was decided that a statue of Lafayette on horseback would be sculpted by Paul Wayland Bartlett and displayed at the Exposition. A novel and educational approach was used to raise funds for the statue: School children from all over the nation contributed small change to the Lafayette Monument Fund. Raising nearly $50,000 during the campaign, they also learned much about the Revolutionary War and the part played by General Lafayette.

More money was to come from the sale, at $2 each, of the 50,000 Lafayette commemorative dollar coins authorized by Congress on March 3, 1899. The Lafayette Memorial Commission originally requested that 100,000 half dollars be minted, but it later decided that dollars would make better souvenirs. Congress intended that the coins would honor not only the Paris Exposition and Lafayette, but also the centennial of George Washington’s death. As it turned out, all of the Lafayette dollars were struck in a single day, December 14, 1899, exactly 100 years to the day after Washington’s final hours.

Die preparation for the coin fell to the Mint’s Chief Engraver, Charles E. Barber. Barber’s typical lack of creative artistry undoubtedly played a part in his selection of the motif: His obverse bore a striking similarity to a design fashioned in 1881 by medalist Peter L. Krider for the Yorktown Centennial medal. It features conjoined busts of Washington and Lafayette and has its roots in even earlier creations: Washington’s likeness was borrowed from a bust by Jean Antoine Houdon created in 1785—the same bust later used by John Flanagan as inspiration for his Washington quarter of 1932. Lafayette’s portrait was taken from an 1824 French medal by Caunois. On the Lafayette dollar, the legend UNITED STATES OF AMERICA arcs above the busts at the rim, and the inscription LAFAYETTE DOLLAR arcs at the border below.

Barber’s reverse design depicts Bartlett’s statue of Lafayette, but as it appeared in the proposed plaster model: A number of changes were subsequently made to the bronze statue, which in 1908 was placed in the Place du Carrousel, adjacent to the Louvre. On the Lafayette dollar, Bartlett’s name appears on the base of the statue. Encircling the border is the inscription ERECTED BY THE YOUTH OF THE UNITED STATES IN HONOR OF GEN LAFAYETTE PARIS 1900. Although the date 1900 appears as part of the inscription, the coin was minted in 1899. Treasury officials side-stepped regulations which prohibited using a date other than the date of coinage by declaring that “1900″ was part of the legend and referred only to the year of the Paris Exposition. Technically, this coin is not dated.

The Philadelphia Mint struck 50,000 Lafayette dollars, along with 26 additional pieces reserved for assay. Research has uncovered five different die varieties, from a combination of three obverse and four reverse dies. Collectors have shown little enthusiasm for the rarer die combinations, however, preventing any great pricing differential. Noted commemorative specialist Anthony Swiatek reports the existence of at least one brilliant proof, said to be one of ten such pieces struck.

The Lafayette Commission refused an offer of $5,000 for the first coin to leave the dies: That first strike had already been earmarked for delivery to President McKinley, who planned to present it to President Loubet of France. Encased in an elaborate chest costing an astonishing $1,000, the coin was shipped across the Atlantic on the S. S. Champagne. It was delivered to the French President on March 3, 1900 in a special ceremony held in the Elysee Palace.

Lafayette dollars proved to be slow sellers. After the Exposition and for a number of years later they were readily available at less than the $2 issue price, often for just above face value. Many ended up in circulation. Ultimately, 14,000 pieces remained unsold and were returned to the Mint where they were stored, unknown to collectors, for almost 45 years. Sometime in 1945, they were melted into bullion.

Although commemorative coins were never intended to circulate, many non-numismatists (who made up the bulk of the initial buyers of the Lafayette issue) often enjoyed polishing their treasures or using them as pocket pieces. The large, heavy dollars easily acquired contact marks and abrasions and frequently suffered abuse from actual wear, as the coins’ low collector value caused many to enter the channels of commerce. As a result, relatively few choice examples survive: most specimens encountered will range from AU to the lower levels of Mint State. Such pieces will often appear dull and lackluster. Higher grade examples, particularly MS-65 and above, are especially elusive. Truly uncirculated specimens will exhibit bright to dull satiny surfaces, although some semi-prooflike pieces do exist. Evidence of wear first appears on Washington’s cheekbone and on Lafayette’s lower curls. On the reverse, check the highest points of the design—the boot, thigh and rear leg of the horse. These areas often come weakly struck and are prone to bag marks, cuts and abrasions. Forgeries exist: known counterfeits have grainy surfaces and exhibit raised spikes or tooling marks above the words STATES and THE in the inscription. Check also for similar tooling marks on the reverse, below the letter “L” of Lafayette.

Today, in marked contrast to when it was issued, the Lafayette dollar is actively sought by type collectors, dollar collectors and of course, those assembling sets of U.S. commemorative coins. As the first commemorative dollar, the first officially issued coin to depict a former President, and the first coin to show the same person (Lafayette) on both sides, the Lafayette dollar will always hold a unique place in numismatics.

Varieties:
There are 4 generally recognized varieties based on diagnostics provided by Frank DuVall – 1A, 1B, 2C and 3D. The majority of the coins fall into 1B and 2C with these two varieties making up 90% of the population. 1A makes up approximately 2% of the population and 3D approximately 6% of the population. Reverse diagnostics as follows:

• Type A reverse. Tip of lowest leaf over 1 of 1900 and 14 leaves on branch. Long stem pointing down towards the last 0 of 1900.
• Type B Reverse. Tip of lowest leaf between 1 and 9 of 1900 and 14 leaves on branch. Medium length stem almost straight curving slightly downward.
• Type C Reverse. Tip of lowest leaf over 9 of 1900 and leaves lie flat against the stem 14 leaves on branch. Short stubby stem curved down.
• Type D reverse. Tip of lowest leaf is over 9 of 1900 and lower leaves spread apart from the stem. 15 leaves on branch. Stem curved slightly upward

Specifications:
Mintage: 50,000
Quantity Distributed: 36,026
Diameter: 38.1 millimeters
Weight: 26.73 grams
Composition: .900 silver, .100 copper
Edge: Reeded
Net Weight: .77344 ounce pure silver

Republished with permission from the Author – Lee Gast

Author Notes: (I am not a writer and I’m gleaning this info from various sources on the web. My purpose here is to share historic information about classic commemorative coins with fellow forum members).

Additional Resources :

Interesting Facts: This was the first U.S. commemorative silver dollar. Although dated 1900, these coins were actually struct on December 14, 1899 (the centenary of Washinton’s death).

Last Updated : 09/22/2007