Bowers and Merena Auctions, America’s leading rare coin auction house, will host their Baltimore Rarities Sale in July at the Baltimore Marriott Waterfront, just prior to the ANA World’s Fair of Money. The auction of nearly 1,300 lots will be presented on Saturday, July 26, with lot viewing scheduled for Thursday to Saturday, July 24-26, and lot pick-up on Sunday, July 27. The catalog includes approximately 1,100 coin and 200 currency lots.

At the top of the highlights list is an impressive 1866-S No Motto Liberty Double Eagle graded MS-60 by NGC. It is described as a High Condition Census example, one of only three Mint State examples known to PCGS and NGC, and the type of Mint State rarity that is not often available to collectors for purchase. Although Winter and Crum were unaware of any Mint State examples of the 1866-S No Motto in numismatic circles, PCGS and NGC have since certified a few coins at that level. The total is limited to just three pieces, however, the finest of which grades only MS-61. Clearly a very rare coin from both absolute and condition standpoints, the BU example that Bowers and Merena is offering represents a fleeting bidding opportunity for the advanced collector of 19th century U.S. gold coinage.

“Bowers and Merena just returned from a very successful June auction in Baltimore where we realized over $6.2 million, and there was already a lot of talk and enthusiasm among attendees to return to Baltimore in July,” said Steve Deeds, president of Bowers and Merena. “We have a fantastic selection of very special coin and currency lots and we are looking forward to presenting an exceptional rarities auction that serious collectors will really appreciate.”

Additional highlights of note include an 1808 Capped Bust Left Quarter Eagle, BD-1, HBCC-3017, the only known dies, Rarity-4, graded MS-61 by NGC. This is an elusive and significant One-Year Type, one of no more than 150 Capped Bust Left Quarter Eagles that are estimated to remain to meet the demand of both early gold specialists and type collectors, the latter group, in particular, representing an ever-growing segment of the numismatic market. Also, notable is a lovely prooflike 1795 Capped Bust Right Half Eagle, Small Eagle, BD-8, HBCC-3041, Miller-10, Rarity-5+, graded MS-63 PL by NGC, a nice coin, and a rarer die pairing of this historically significant and extremely popular federal gold issue. (more…)

The Japanese government is creating 94 types of commemorative 500 and 1,000 yen coins, including special coins for each prefecture. The designs for Kyoto and Shimane (pictured) were announced by Finance Minister Fukushiro Nukaga.

The 1,000-yen coins for Kyoto and Shimane will be sterling silver, weigh 31.1 grams and measure 40 millimeters in diameter. The government will mint a total of 100,000 of each coin.

The Kyoto coin features a scene from the classic work penned by Murasaki Shikibu (Lady Murasaki), depicting romances among members of the court in medieval Kyoto.

It will be issued before the millennial anniversary Nov. 1 of the Tale of Genji, which first appeared in recorded history in 1008.

The Shimane coin will be minted to celebrate the addition last year of the centuries-old Iwami silver mine to the World Heritage List of the U.N. Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization.

The reverse side of the coins will have a uniform design for all 47 prefectures, featuring snow crystals, cherry blossoms and a crescent moon.

These will be among 94 types of 500- and 1000-yen coins for each of Japan’s 47 prefectures that will be released over the next eight years to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the going into force of the Local Autonomy Law, according to the Finance Ministry.

The government decided on the design of the two coins after releasing the Hokkaido coin in time for this year’s July 7-9 Group of Eight summit to be held in the Lake Toya resort area there. (more…)

The United States Mint has chosen the nation’s largest coin show in Baltimore, Md., this summer to unveil the much-anticipated 2009 Ultra High Relief Double Eagle gold coin-a modern version of what many call the most beautiful gold piece ever created. United States Mint Director Ed Moy will participate in the Opening Ceremony of the American Numismatic Association’s World’s Fair of Money on Wednesday, July 30, 2008, at 9:30 a.m. and then officially open the United States Mint exhibit. The display at the United States Mint booth will show the development of this modern masterpiece-a one-ounce 24-karat (.9999 pure) gold Ultra High Relief Double Eagle.

Aided by advancements in technology, the United States Mint now can produce in quantity the ultra high relief coin envisioned, but never fully realized, by renowned sculptor Augustus Saint-Gaudens in the early 20th century. The collectible coin will be about 50 percent thicker than other United States Mint one-ounce gold coins to achieve the greater depth and relief to which Saint-Gaudens aspired. Visitors will be able to feel the ultra high relief on a plaster of the coin that will be featured at the exhibit.

The 2009 Ultra High Relief Double Eagle gold coin exhibit will remain on display throughout the week at the United States Mint booth on the bourse floor at the World’s Fair of Money.

The United States Mint will make these coins available for sale to the public in the beginning of 2009. There will be no mintage limit. The coins will only be sold in 2009. Like the original Double Eagles, the new coin will have a denomination of $20. The sales price will depend on prevailing world gold prices in 2009. (more…)

FIRST AUSTRALIAN KOALA GOLD PROOF COIN SERIES
The Perth Mint is proud to announce an iconic new series of proof quality 99.99% pure gold coins.

Introduced in response to collector desire for an Australian gold coin series depicting the Mint’s popular koala design theme, these stunning numismatic releases are meticulously struck in proof quality.

Available in three denominations, the Australian Gold Proof Koala is the first Perth Mint series to include a 1oz ‘high relief’ coin. The spectacular release is struck on a significantly thicker blank to accommodate the greater design depth on its specially prepared die.

A mother and baby koala sitting on a tree branch are depicted on the reverse of each coin. The design, which also incorporates The Perth Mint’s ‘P’ mintmark, is struck in ‘high relief’ on the 1oz coin.

Issued as legal tender under the Australian Currency Act 1965, proof quality Australian Koala gold coins are set to delight the most fastidious collectors into the future with appealing new designs each year.

2008 GOOD FORTUNE GOLD PROOF COIN
Chinese culture is steeped in lucky symbols. This stunning coin, which portrays several symbols of fortune and wealth, also reflects the auspiciousness of the number eight in traditional beliefs.

The centre of the octagonal coin’s reverse design portrays a stylised combination of Chinese characters with the literal meaning ‘bringing money and treasures’. Other design elements portray:

- a peony, the ‘flower of riches’, in colour
- eight yuan bao, small ingots used in ancient China as money
- a string of eight lucky coins with square holes

In ancient times, the circular shape of such coins was said to represent Heaven, while their square hole symbolised Earth.

Struck by The Perth Mint from 8.88g of 99.99% pure gold in proof quality, the eight-sided coin is issued as legal tender under the authority of the Government of Tuvalu. Housed in attractive presentation packaging, the coin is limited to an extremely limited mintage of just 2,008. (more…)

For the first time, United States Mint Director Ed Moy will display in Dallas, Texas, the design for the 2009 Louis Braille Bicentennial Silver Dollar, the first United States coin to feature readable Braille. The unveiling ceremony at AT&T Plaza at the American Airlines Center in Dallas on Wednesday morning, July 2, 2008, will open the National Federation of the Blind’s 2008 National Convention. A United States Mint exhibit at the convention from 12 p.m. -2 p.m. CT the same day will allow visitors to examine a coin prototype and read the word “Braille” in Braille code on the prototype’s reverse (tails side).

The commemorative silver dollar, authorized by Congress and issued by the United States Mint, honors the bicentennial of the birth of Louis Braille, the creator of the Braille reading and writing system for the blind and people with vision loss. Surcharges from the sale of this collectible coin are authorized to go to the National Federation of the Blind to fund Braille literacy initiatives.

A Federation “March for Independence” will stop briefly at AT&T Plaza at 8:00 a.m. for the unveiling ceremony and then continue to the convention at the Hilton Anatole Hotel, where the coin prototype will be exhibited in the afternoon.

The 2009 Louis Braille Bicentennial Silver Dollar will be available for purchase from the United States Mint in the spring of 2009. (more…)