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November 25, 2006
Seigniorage with a new face (make that 37 new faces)
The mint is taking another run at making a dollar coin people will use. In reality, it sounds like a dollar coin that people will want to collect. (NY Times)
The United States Mint is unveiling four designs for one-dollar coins today, featuring likenesses of the first four presidents. They begin a series that is to last a decade and portray every deceased president.
The United States Mint is planning a series of one-dollar coins to feature every deceased president, with the date stamped into the edge.
The first coin, displaying George Washington on one side and the Statue of Liberty on the other, will go into circulation in mid-February, in time for Presidents’ Day. After that, coins with John Adams, Thomas Jefferson and James Madison will be issued at three-month intervals.
...
The size, color and metal content of the $1 coins will be identical to those of the current Sacagawea dollars, but their luster should last longer because of a new anti-tarnishing compound that will be applied to blank coins between the time they are annealed, or softened by heating, and struck with the design.
The date and some inscriptions will be stamped into the edge, airing out the designs.
The director of the Mint, Edmund C. Moy, said the number of each presidential dollar coin issued would depend on circulation demands forecast by the Federal Reserve, regardless of how well known a president was. “This could be a renaissance for some of our lesser-known presidents,” Mr. Moy said in an interview.
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Hopes are that the new dollars will be as popular as the state quarters, many of which have been taken out of circulation by collectors. The government has earned $4 billion to $5 billion on the state-quarter series since 1999.
I like dollar coins. We really should emulate Canada with both $1 and $2 coins. Count me in as collecting this series. I also love the quote from the director of the Mint. The number issued will be determined by circulation demand, not the popularity of the president. Be prepared to observe Gresham's Law in action. Andrew Johnson coins might circulate at face value while collectors hoard all the Jeffersons.
Here's the announcement from the U.S. Mint. Note that Grover Cleveland gets two coins for his non-consecutive terms.
Posted by William Polley at November 25, 2006 12:52 AM
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Comments
The surest way to make the transition to $1 and $2 coins is to take the paper out of circulation -- that's what happened in Canada.
Posted by: EclectEcon at December 1, 2006 3:46 PM
Off-topic. What's with all the silence? It's December. Time for a new post! ;-)
Posted by: Gabriel M. at December 5, 2006 4:16 AM