First spouse coin-- Rare, but does anyone want them?

The 2009 mintages for first spouse gold coins will make them among the rarest of US commemoratives. As of today (updated Nov 13, 2009), only 2,993 uncirculated and 5,081 proof Anna Harrison gold coins have been minted and sold. At prices of over $700 per coin, collecting the first spouse series has become too expensive. The first spouses in the 2009 series are much more obscure historically than the first year's. Interest, it seems, has waned.

First spouse coins becoming scarcer -- but no one wants them.

After his first spouse died, John Tyler remarried. Thus there were two first spouses while Tyler was in the White House: Letitia Tyler and Julia Tyler. As a result, there are five first spouse designs for 2009 rather than four for 2008 and 2007. When this is combined with the surge in the price of gold, the total cost of collecting the 2009's is now double what it cost to collect all for the 2007 First Spouse coins. 

For more information on first spouse coins, please see my website at: peterplanchet.com/firstspousecoins.

Biggest Uncirculated Set Ever Features Original Recipe Cents

The 2009 uncirculated set features a whopping 36 coins (18 from denver and 18 from philadelphia).  Among the highlights of the set (in my opinion):

The four newly designed Lincoln cents, which will be struck in their original alloy of 95% copper, 3% zinc, and 2% tin.  Introduced in 1909, the recipe lasted until 1982. 

The set will also feature the Kennedy Half Dollars, which are generally not released into circulation.  

From each mint there will be four presidential dollar coins and one native american dollar coin.  Since these still don't seem to circulate, this may be the best chance to procure one. 

There are also six territory dollar coins from each mint.  this represents the encore from the State Quarter Series.  All in all, this uncirculated set seems to offer much more than the typical year.  The price is $27.95, which is about double face value,which seems like quite a bargain.  For now, they are available directly from the US mint.

For the 2009 American Eagle Proof coins, the Wait is Over

Yes folks, we no longer have to wait for the 2009 American Eagle proof coins -- we aren’t getting any.  That’s right, the mint has finally decided they will not make them.  They also will not be producing the silver eagle proof coins.

The reason relates to the mint’s interpretation of a law requiring the mint to produce bullion coins in quantities sufficient to meet public demand.  Therefore, all of the silver and gold blanks are being dedicated to the bullion coins rather than proofs for collectors.  The mint had spent most of the year teasing us that the coins would probably be available late in the year. 

The rouse is over.  We aren’t getting any.

Proof buffalo gold coins, however, are currently available -- but at a whopping price of $1360 a coin (due to fluctuate with the price of gold).

Lincoln Coin and Chronicles set on sale Oct 15.

This Thursday, October 15 at hight noon, there will be another chance to purchase the Lincoln commemorative dollar through the Lincoln Coin and Chronicles set. The set will be sold for %55.95, which is not so bad considering the high value of the Lincoln dollar.

The set includes a 2009 Abraham Lincoln Commemorative Proof Silver Dollar(previously sold out at the mint) and ,
four proof 95% copper one-cent coins with the 2009 one-cent reverse designs (available at the mint for $7.95).

Also included in the set are a reproduction of the Gettysburg Address in Lincoln’s handwriting (thus the chronicles) and a reproduction of a photograph of Abraham Lincoln (big whoop!)

The mint is packaging the product in a "slip-covered leather-like tri-fold case."

The mint is limiting purchases to one per customer. I would expect a reasonably quick sell out since many collectors missed the first opportunity to purchase the Lincoln dollar.

I found a silver nickel

I don't mean to make a big too-do over little, but I found a 1943 P silver jefferson nickel in change this week. As I mentioned in my previous post, the mint halted production of nickels and dimes for the year. As I predicted, this would compel Americans to go into their change drawers and start spending their older coins. I encourage everyone to look more closely at their change for the remainder of the year.

Mint halts production of Nickels and dimes

Note: This is a story previously published at peterplanchet.com.That site has a related video.

The US mint has halted production of all Jefferson Nickels and Roosevelt dimes for the remainder of 2009. The final mintage totals for these coins will be similar to the 1950's. In particular, the 2009D Roosevelt dime should end up with mintage of only around 50 million. Compare this to the billions that were produced over a decade ago. Why the halt? The first reason is the move towards a cashless society. As Americans use credits cards for even the smallest of purchases, the need to produce coins and paper money diminishes. The larger reason, however, is the recession. When the economy was doing well, Americans dumped their daily change into boxes or drawers. Now that there's a recession, those boxes and drawers are being tapped. Ergo, there is no need for new coins. It will be interesting to see how many older coins suddenly turn up in circulation.