2011 Army Commemorative Coin Designs
The Commission of Fine Arts (CFA) and Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee (CCAC) recently reviewed candidate designs for the 2011 Army Commemorative Coin Program. The program includes a $5 gold coin, silver dollar, and half dollar. The US Mint provided three to five design candidates for the obverse and reverse of each coin.
Before the weekend, an article on Coin Update reported on the CCAC meeting and provided a look at all of the candidate designs. This post will recap the recommendations of both the CFA and CCAC.
Coin Update article: 2011 United States Army Commemorative Coin Designs.
During their respective meetings, the CFA and CCAC both voiced complaints and issues regarding the quality of the coin design candidates. In several cases, they chose to reject all of the designs provided by the US Mint. This is something that seems to be happening with increasing frequency, despite the US Mint Director's frequent statements about sparking a Neo Renaissance in coin design and achieving a new level of artistic excellence.
For the Army Commemorative $5 gold coin obverse, the CCAC recommended a design showing five soldiers from different periods: the Revolutionary War, the Civil War, World War I, World War II, and today. The CFA had favored a design featuring a full length view of soldiers from the Revolutionary War, Civil War, and World War II.
Three candidate designs were provided for the $5 gold coin reverse. Each one featured the Seal of the United States Army with some differences in the surrounding inscriptions, lettering, or borders. The design shown below was selected by the CCAC. The version recommended by the CFA does not include the inscription "Department of the Army" and the remaining inscriptions are rearranged.
There were five different design candidates for the obverse of the 2011 Army Commemorative Silver Dollar. Four of the five featured a globe in the background. The CCAC selected a design featuring a male and female soldier back to back with the globe in the background. The CFA refused to back any of the provided designs.
For the reverse of the silver dollar, the CFA and CCAC each recommended a different design. The CFA recommended an image of the Great Seal of the United States with the core values of the Army encircling the seal: Loyalty, Duty, Respect, Selfless Service, Honor, Integrity, Personal Courage. The CCAC recommended a design featuring three soldiers, one carries a wounded soldier and the other protects them.
For the 2011 Army Commemorative Half Dollar, both the CFA and CCAC rejected all of the provided obverse designs. These designs were representations of the work that the Army does in peace time.
For the reverse design, both recommended a design featuring a Revolutionary War soldier carrying a musket. Thirteen stars appear above and an inscription reads "First in Service to the Nation". The image is reminiscent of the Drummer Boy on the reverse of the 1976 Bicentennial Washington Quarter.
US Mint Pricing Policy
An update is available for last week's post regarding the pricing for the United States Mint's numismatic gold coins. The Mint released a statement explaining why prices were not reduced.
According to the statement, an internal policy with additional criteria is used to determine whether pricing changes will be made. The Wednesday PM London Fix price is used to determine the trend of gold prices in comparison to the calculated average.
This is the first I have heard about this separate internal policy and I do not believe it has been mentioned or published previously. This also seems to be the first time that the internal policy was invoked to override the procedure described in the US Mint's policy provided in the Federal Register.
The full story is on Coin Update: US Mint Responds on Numismatic Gold Coin Pricing Policy
Labels: Coin Designs
posted by Mint News Blog @ 12:05 PM
22 Comments:
Finally some great looking ideas ! teebark
Finally some great looking ideas !
Great looking designs! I'm sure whatever the most PC design will end up on the coin.
I agree. Most of these designs are nice.
I hope that they will choose a different obverse for the one dollar coin. I realize the importance of diversity and having a woman on at least one coin. But they definitely could find a better design.
I didn't realize the computer magazine "PC World" would be a better name for a USMint magazine!
Michael,
Regarding the internal gold pricing policy. Have there been any times when they did not follow this newly revealed internal policy in the past, or is this the first time that this situation has occured? Thanks.
I have an idea, Why not have Army veterans past and present decide which designs to go with. The CCAC and CFA seem to always pick the lesser designs. These coins are meant to honor those who have or presently do serve in the Army, not the rest of us or the CCAC or CFA. I am totally opposed to the one with the male and female back to back with the globe behind them. It seems more like a design to honor UN peace keepers than the the US Army.
I see some potential here. But I don't think "Turbo Tax" Tim will approve anything with all white guys or the revolutionary war in prominence. Remember, it was those revolutionary white guys that screwed up the country.
Internal policy? Pure BS...Mr Moy said the original pricing policy was to provide "transparency" in regards to gold pricing. The only thing transparent is the lack of fairness to collectors at the expense of an even more devious greed factor. Pure and simple, they have no competition so the customers can go to.....
Internal Policy, suuuuure, yeah ok! I would like to see this "Internal Policy". The mint was wrong in what they did and they know it.
The first/top obverse design is awesome and makes me feel proud to be an American. The one with the man and woman with the globe in the background is lame. My Dad was in the Army and I think he would approve of my comments.
The coin design with the wounded soldier being helped is a bad design, sorry. It makes our military look like they get their butts kicked and have to limp off.
Of coarse they had to have the coin with a woman on it, I am guessing that is the coin they pick as it rewrites history like they always do.
These coins designs overall are not very imaginative, Moy has not done what he promised.
Maybe the mint should get the help of the Army with the coin design since it is suppose to be about them, I would think they have some interesting ideas besides these.
Based on these coins designs I think maybe the mint needs to have the general public get involved in designing out coins. In the UK they did that with children and one of them came up with a much better design that many of the pros could. It is time for the mint to start thinking outside of the box and be creative for a change.
"Regarding the internal gold pricing policy. Have there been any times when they did not follow this newly revealed internal policy in the past, or is this the first time that this situation has occurred?"
I just checked back over all of the price changes, and it seems that this was the first time the internal policy would apply and the first time it was used. For more than a year, there have been no other instances when the Wed PM Fix was different than the average for Thurs AM to Wed AM.
From a practical standpoint, it makes the internal policy seem a little ridiculous since it's only been necessary one time in more than a year.
Agreed. The design that makes us look like we are in full retreat, hualing off our wounded, and overall getting our butt kicked would most likey be one of Geithners choices.
I personally like the second example with the three different centuries represented. Not too impressed with the others. Didn't we just have a wounded vet coin?
The one with the man and woman with globe in background looks like a "Ghostbusters" ad.
There was no internal policy until someone asked...just like Sestak was not offered a job until someone probed further. Just like Nixon didn't know about Watergate. Just like Johnson didn't use Medicare to fund Vietnam. Just like Congress didn't debase our coinage. Just like FDR's Emergency Powers were necessary. Just like Grant didn't profit from railroad deals.
We've seen all of this before because it is written in history. People lose trust in gov't paper IOUs; gov't spends more than they have; corruption; deflation then inflation; laws breaking previous laws; excess debt; war. Yes, there may be a light at the end of the war(s) - a rebirth of ideals/structure.
But why is this - history repeating itself - so hard for people to fathom? Why put any faith in any gov't at all? This time, the cynics ARE right.
How about a coin of General George Armstrong Custer leading his troops into Little Big Horn...
Now, that coin I would collect.
"nights of thunder"
Just received information that 2010 Fractional Gold American Eagle coins will be available in about two weeks.
Outstanding article by Debbie Bradley of the Numismatic News about the low quality designs being put forth based on US Mint guidelines. The crux of the matter is that designs of late are more storyboard illustrations rather than allegorical distillations, thus are overly busy and unappealing. While there are good examples of literal designs post-allegory i.e. Brenner's Lincoln Cent, Fraser's Indian Nickel etc., most of the greatest US coin designs are from artists who used allegory: Scot, Kneass, St. Gaudens, AA Weinman, De Francisci. Now we have women on boy scout coins and scientists peering through microscopes representing the Army.
Look at some of the outstanding designs being produced around the world - Austria, Canada, Australia etc. All the best US designs of late are recycled from the past - St. Gaudens, Fraser etc. etc. Where is this supposed "artistic infusion"??
Ed Moy's got to go.
http://www.numismaster.com/ta/numis/Article.jsp?ad=article&ArticleId=11204
I really like all of these, especially the one with the one soldier carrying the other on his back.
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