Lincoln First Spouse Gold Coins Launch December 2

by admin on December 1, 2010

in Release Dates

The United States Mint will release the Mary Todd Lincoln First Spouse Gold Coins at noon Thursday, December 2, 2010. Available options will include the standard face value $10 proof and $10 uncirculated Lincoln First Spouse Gold Coins.

The proof version will go on sale for $854 and the uncirculated will be listed for $841. Prices are determined by the United States Mint pricing policy and can change weekly based on the London Fix average price of gold.

Also on December 2, the Mint will stop selling the 2009 Margaret Taylor First Spouse Gold Coins. Margaret Taylor’s coins could end up with very low sales figures compared to earlier issues. The lowest minted proof has been the 2009 Julia Tyler version at 4,830, but Margaret Taylor’s proof was only 4,787 on November 21. Taylor’s uncirculated may end as the third lowest, behind Julia and Letitia Tyler. Of course, many collectors appreciate low mintage levels, because they may make the coins more valuable over time.

The 24-karat one-half ounce First Spouse Gold Coins, which started in 2007, honor the First Ladies of each U.S. President. Congress mandated that at least four new First Spouse Gold Coins will be struck each year through 2016 in the order that the First Ladies served.

Unlike the earlier 2010 issues which have total mintage caps at 15,000, the U.S. Mint set the maximum mintage of Mary Todd Lincoln First Spouse Gold Coins at 20,000, expecting stronger demand. Coins released from 2007 to 2009 had higher mintages of 40,000, but only the first few releases sold out. Recent sales, like those of early 2009 released coins, ended between 7,000 and 10,000.

The Mary Todd Lincoln First Spouse Gold Coins are seventeenth in the series and the last ones to appear in 2010. The other 2010 coins featured Abigail Fillmore, Jane Pierce, and James Buchanan’s Liberty.

Mary Todd Lincoln Information

The former First Lady married Abraham Lincoln, the sixteenth President of the United States, in 1842. Abraham served as an Illinois state legislator and later in the US House of Representatives before winning the US Presidency in 1860.

The American Civil War eroded a "normal" social life for Mrs. Lincoln at the White House, as did the early death of her young son Willie in 1862. Still, she was remembered as a lady who was enthusiastic and able to put her guests at ease.

Mary Lincoln Lincoln First Spouse Gold Coin Designs

Mary Lincoln’s portrait is featured on the obverse and is surrounded by the inscriptions MARY TODD LINCOLN, 16TH, 1861-1865, IN GOD WE TRUST, LIBERTY, 2010, and has the ‘W’ mint mark.

United States Mint Sculptor-Engraver Phebe Hemphill designed the obverse, and Artistic Infusion Program Master Designer Joel Iskowitz created the reverse.

The reverse side illustrates Mary Lincoln as she brings flowers and books to wounded Union soldiers. The inscriptions include UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, E PLURIBUS UNUM, $10, 1/2 OZ. and .9999 FINE GOLD.

To order, visit http://www.usmint.gov/ or call the toll-free number, 1-800-USA-MINT (872-6468). Hearing and speech-impaired customers may order by calling TTY 1-888-321-MINT (6468).

Bronze medal versions of Mary Lincoln’s First Spouse coins will also be available on December 2 for $5.50.

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