The ACCG deplores this unprecedented extension of UNESCO inspired import restrictions to include historical coins of possible Cypriot origin. In this action, without stating any justification or disclosing reasons for this decision, the State Department departed from its prior decisions exempting coins from import restrictions - even though the solid factual basis for this exemption has not changed. Under the CPIA statute, import restrictions should only be imposed on artifacts “found in the ground”. There is no statutory authority to impose import restrictions based on where an artifact was made.

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The United States Mint will display for the first time 12 gold proof Sacagawea Golden Dollars that flew aboard the Space Shuttle Columbia in July 1999. The 12 gold versions of the circulating Golden Dollars will be unveiled at the American Numismatic Association’s World’s Fair of Money® in Milwaukee, the largest coin show in the nation. Until now, the gold “space coins” have been stored at Fort Knox. They never have been seen in public, and similar gold coins were never sold, making them extremely rare. Although the coins’ value has not been established, they are very unique as historic artifacts.

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Dallas, TX: During World War II, copper was in short supply. Vital to the war effort for everything from ammunition to military equipment, the US Mint researched alternative metals from which one-cent coins could be made, thus increasing the supply of copper for military purposes. Various metals were explored, as well as plastics, but eventually zinc-coated steel was decided upon. All three mints - Philadelphia, Denver and San Francisco - produced these coins in 1943, but problems with the new metal were soon discovered, including a tendency to rust and their confusion with dimes, and the zinc-coated steel production was abandoned the following year in favor of salvaged brass shell casings augmented with pure copper. (more…)

Coined for Maryland ca. 1658, Only Seven Specimens Are Known

(NEW YORK – July 11) The collectible population of one of the rarest and most historically important of all colonial issues has increased by 50% with the discovery of a newly discovered specimen, making a total of three Maryland denariums in private hands. A pair of metal detectorists working in the historic riverside community of Middlesex County, Virginia – near where the Rappahannock River meets the Chesapeake Bay – uncovered the tiny copper coin in the spring of 2007 and contacted Stack’s upon finding the extremely rare coin listed in the Guide Book of United States Coins and realizing they had discovered something of great importance.

While two examples of the Maryland denarium have sold at public auction in the last 25 years, those two examples appear to be the only other specimens in private hands from a total population of just seven coins. Specimens are known in institutional collections in the Boston Museum of Fine Arts, the Smithsonian Institution (where two reside permanently), and the St. Mary’s County (MD) Historical Society. One of the Smithsonian coins and the St. Mary’s County coins were also dug up, apparently both in Maryland, as was the John Roper specimen (sold by Stack’s in 1983), which was found with a metal detector by a Maryland college student in 1977

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WASHINGTON - A United States Mint commemorative coin, the Marine Corps 230th Anniversary Silver Dollar, has been named “Coin of the Year” (COTY) by a distinguished panel of international judges. The COTY competition also recognized two U.S. circulating coins, the 2005 American Bison Nickel, as the “Most Popular Coin,” and the Oregon commemorative quarter-dollar, as the “Best Trade Coin.” The 2007 COTY Awards span a two-year judging period. “The men and women of the United States Mint create beautiful coins that reflect the spirit, traditions and values that Americans hold dear,” said United States Mint Director Edmund C. Moy. “We are proud that our coins have been honored.”

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