Lincoln Coin and Chronicles Set on Sale Today

Today, the Lincoln Coin and Chronicles Set will go on sale at the US Mint starting at 12:00 Noon ET. Anticipation for the set has been high since it was first announced in April and ordering details were revealed in late September.

To briefly recap, the set will contain one 2009 Proof Lincoln Silver Dollar and four 2009 Proof Lincoln Cents. The commemorative silver dollars had sold out for the individual coin offerings back in March. Only 50,000 of the maximum authorized mintage remains, which have been allocated to the Coin and Chronicles Set. The 2009 Proof Lincoln Cents are struck in a composition of 95% copper, 3% zinc, and 2% tin to match the composition of the original 1909 Lincoln Cent. Also included with the set are a reproduction of a photograph of Abraham Lincoln, a reproduction of the Gettysburg Address in his handwriting, and a certificate of authenticity. The contents are displayed in a leather-like folder with an outer slipcover.

The sets are priced at $55.95 each with an ordering limit of only one set per household. Most are expecting the Lincoln Coin and Chronicles Set to sell out by the end of the day.

There are several reasons for the expected popularity. This will be the last opportunity to obtain the Lincoln Commemorative Silver Dollar directly from the US Mint. Individually, the coins already sell for more than the price of the set.

This will mark the lowest production Lincoln-related product released by the US Mint this year. Besides the Coin and Chronicles Set, the lowest production product is currently the Lincoln Birthplace Two Roll Sets with production of 96,000 units. These originally sold at $8.95 each and now sell for about $100 on the secondary market.

Lastly, the US Mint seems to have done a nice job with this set. The coins are attractively presented, and historical materials will be interesting to see. The set has the potential for broader appeal beyond coin collectors, which should add to its demand.

While I personally don't like the practice, a number of people have listed pre-sales for the Lincoln Coin and Chronicles Set on eBay (view current auctions). Most of the current auctions are priced somewhat excessively, but completed auctions reveal several pre-sales in the $175 to $200 range. Once people start to place confirmed orders, I am sure the pre-sale activity will pick up even more.

You can access the US Mint's product page directly with this link. You will be able to place your orders at 12:00 Noon ET.

(Note: With popular products such as this, some readers will often post their order numbers and time stamp in the comments. This is fine, and an interesting way to gauge the pace of orders- but please X-out the last three or four digits of your order number for security purposes.)