This year Herbert von Karajan would have celebrated his 100th birthday. He was born on 5th April, 1908, in the city of Salzburg. To commemorate this great Austrian conductor the Austrian Mint in Vienna is issuing a 5 Euro silver coin on 7th May, 2008.

On the occasion of his death in 1989 the New York Times characterised Karajan as “probably the world’s best-known conductor and one of the most powerful figures in classical music.”

As a child he already showed great talent on the piano. He studied at the Salzburg Mozarteum and later at the university and academies in Vienna. His first public performance (as a “trail-conductor”) was in 1929 with the Mozarteum Orchestra in Salzburg. In 1930 he became the conductor and musical director at the City Theatre in Ulm.

During the war Karajan’s membership in the Nazi Party protected his career and his part-Jewish wife, but it proved a hindrance after 1945, despite his acquittal by the Austrian denazification examining board. Nevertheless, he conducted in Milan and in London as well as at the Lucerne Festival. In 1955 he was appointed the music director of the Berlin Philharmonic for life. In Vienna he conducted the world famous Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra and at the Vienna Opera, as well as at the Salzburg Festival, where he also established Easter Festival.

Karajan was recognised worldwide as a masterly conductor. Although he conducted (and recorded) all the great composers, he was especially associated with the performance of the works of Beethoven, all of which he put on record. In 1972 The Council of Europe commissioned him to arrange Beethoven’s “Ode to Joy” from the Ninth Symphony as the European anthem. Karajan was also instrumental in the development of the compact disk, lending his prestige and endorsement to the recording and sale of CDs. (more…)

WASHINGTON - Beginning May 13, 2008, the United States Mint is shining the spotlight on its Presidential $1 Coin products. Here’s what collectors can expect.

On Tuesday, May 13, the United States Mint will release a second option in the collection, the United States Mint Presidential $1 Coin Historical Signature SetTM, in honor of John Adams, our Nation’s second President. This latest product includes a proof version of the John Adams Presidential $1 Coin and an intaglio print of John Adams from the Bureau of Engraving and Printing. The intaglio print is visible from the cover of the textured, leather-like folder of the United States Mint Presidential $1 Coin Historical Signature Set. Inside the folder is the official John Adams Presidential signature, courtesy of the White House Historical Association. A Certificate of Authenticity accompanies each set.

The first option in the collection, the United States Mint Presidential $1 Coin Historical Signature Set - George Washington, is also available.

To commemorate the accomplishments of John Quincy Adams-our Nation’s sixth President-the United States Mint will offer bags and rolls of Presidential $1 Coins bearing his image at noon (ET) on May 15, 2008.

The John Quincy Adams Presidential $1 Coin will be available in 250-coin bags offered at $319.95 and in 25-coin rolls offered at $35.95. The bags and rolls contain coins that were struck at the United States Mints at Denver and Philadelphia for use in everyday financial transactions. The bags and rolls of John Quincy Adams Presidential $1 Coins display the mint of origin, the monetary value of the contents ($25-rolls, $250-bags), and the genuine United States Mint logo. (more…)

WASHINGTON - The United States Mint will begin accepting orders for the 2008 American Eagle Platinum Proof Coins at 12:00 noon (ET) on May 5, 2008. This year’s coins feature the final design in the three-year series entitled, “The Foundations of American Democracy,” celebrating our Nation’s Judicial Branch of government.

Emblazoned on the reverse of the 2008 American Eagle Platinum Proof Coins is an allegorical image of Lady Justice, a classic symbol dating back to the Greeks and Romans. Scales, suspended from a finger of her right hand, represent the delicate balance of the law. A sword in her left hand symbolizes the power of reason, which can be wielded in either direction. The bald eagle-our Nation’s symbol of courage and freedom-watches over our firm foundation of democracy.

The coin’s reverse was sculpted by United States Mint Artistic Infusion Program Master Designer Joel Iskowitz and engraved by United States Mint Sculptor-Engraver Charles Vickers.

The obverse of the 2008 American Eagle Platinum Proof Coins-designed and engraved by United States Mint Sculptor-Engraver John Mercanti-bears an image of Lady Liberty, symbolizing vigilance and faithfulness to duty.

American Eagle Platinum Proof Coins bear the “W” mintmark denoting production at the United States Mint at West Point. Each coin is encapsulated in plastic and is accompanied by a Certificate of Authenticity. Pricing and mintages of the 2008 American Eagle Platinum Proof Coins are listed below: (more…)

The granddaughter of an early polar explorer has attended a ceremony to mark the launch of the first Antarctic coin. The coin has been created by the Pobjoy Mint in Kingswood, Surrey, to commemorate the centenary of the Granting of Letters Patent in 1908 when the UK first claimed the British Antarctic Territory.

The striking ceremony was attended by Philippa Foster Back, chairwoman of the United Kingdom Antarctic Heritage Trust, whose grandfather Frank Debenham accompanied Robert Falcon Scott’s Antarctic Terra Nova Expedition to the South Pole from 1910 to 1913.

The £2 coin, which has been issued on behalf of the British Antarctic Territory, features the territory’s coat of arms which includes a lion standing on grass to represent the UK and an emperor penguin standing on ice to represent the native wildlife of Antarctica.

It is the first ever legal tender commemorative coin issued by the British Antarctic Territory, making it the world’s first Antarctic coin. (more…)