UNITED STATES "AMERICAN EAGLE" BULLION COINS -
1986-DATE
Notes:
In 1986, the United States
began striking gold and silver bullion coins to compete with world bullion
coins such as the Canadian Maple Leaf, the South African Krugerrand, and
others. The value of these coins was intended to be tied directly to
their metal value, although in some cases (where mintages were low) a
collector market has developed. The bullion value of these coins far
outstrips their face value.
Known as "American
Eagles" because of the family of eagles on the reverse, U.S. silver bullion coins are available in Uncirculated and Proof versions, as well as
in a number of different sets. Proof coins may be ordered by the
general public directly from the Mint. Uncirculated coins are
distributed by selected representatives, who then make them available to
the secondary market.
The obverse of the U.S.
silver bullion coins follows the artistic design created by Adolphe A.
Weinman for the Half Dollars issued from 1916-1947,
inclusive. John Mercanti created the reverse design.
Each Silver Eagle has a face
value of $1 and contains exactly one ounce of pure silver in an alloy of
99.93% silver and .07% copper. A limited number of Mint State
2004 Silver Eagles were encapsulated by the Professional Coin Grading Service along
with an insert signed by former NASA astronaut, Kathryn D. Sullivan. A
portion of the proceeds was dedicated to a science museum located in Ohio.
In 1997, the United States
began striking platinum coins to compete with other world bullion
coins. U.S. platinum
bullion coins are available in Uncirculated and Proof versions in four
denominations: $10, $25, $50, and $100. The true value of these coins is tied directly to
their intrinsic metal value, although in a few cases (where mintages are low)
collectors will pay a significant premium over the bullion value.
Generally, however, the bullion value of these coins far
outstrips their face value.
Proof coins may be ordered by the
general public directly from the Mint, either as single coins or as a
complete set of the four different denominations. Uncirculated coins are
distributed by selected representatives, who then make them available to
the secondary market based on the prevailing bullion value of platinum.
John M. Mercanti designed the obverse of the U.S.
platinum bullion coins using the head of the Statue of Liberty. In
keeping with the Mint's "American Eagles" theme, new reverses
are developed each year - always with an eagle incorporated into the
design.
The metal content of each
denomination consists of 99.95% pure platinum. Mintmarks
appear on the reverse, but positions vary from year to year. U.S.
platinum bullion coins have been struck at the following mints:
Philadelphia
West Point BEWARE -
Counterfeit examples of the 2002 1/10 ounce platinum coins began being
offered in 2003.
|
