The following Q&A is excerpted from Clifford Mishler’s Coins: Questions & Answers, 5th edition: Q: What were the forces which deemed it proper that Washington be featured on the new quarter introduced in 1932, when in his lifetime Washington is said to have rejected the idea of having his image featured on a coin? A: […]
Q&A: Proofs, Proof Sets, and Other Questions
Periodically, Coin Update runs a Q&A from Clifford Mishler’s Coins: Questions & Answers, 5th edition. Since the U.S. Mint is ringing in the new year with the 2017 America the Beautiful Quarters Proof Set (17AP, available for purchase as of noon today), we thought it would be interesting to post several questions on the topic. Happy […]
Q&A: Why Doesn’t the U.S. Change Coin Designs as Often as Other Countries Do?
The following Q&A is excerpted from Clifford Mishler’s Coins: Questions & Answers, 5th edition: Q: Are there any specific reasons why the United States does not change the design of its coins as frequently as do foreign countries? A: A law enacted by Congress on September 26, 1890, specified that changes in the design of […]
Q&A: Is it True That 1917-1930 Standing Liberty Quarters Were Illegally Struck?
The following Q&A is excerpted from Clifford Mishler’s Coins: Questions & Answers, 5th edition: Q: Is it true that the Standing Liberty quarters struck from 1917 through 1930 were illegal, or were illegally struck? A: That could be said. The authorizing legislation for the Standing Liberty quarter specified: “No change shall be made in the […]
Q&A: Why Were No Traditional Silver Dollars Coined for Circulation After 1935?
The following Q&A is excerpted from Clifford Mishler’s Coins: Questions & Answers, 5th edition: Q: Why is it that no traditional silver dollars were coined for circulation after 1935? A: Throughout its long and vexatious history, the U.S. silver dollar was never essential to the welfare of the domestic marketplace. In our nation’s early days, […]
Q&A: What Was the First Coin to Be Issued by Authority of the United States?
The following Q&A is excerpted from Clifford Mishler’s Coins: Questions & Answers, 5th edition: Q: What was the first coin to be issued by authority of the United States and when was it issued? A: Commerce was plagued by a flow of underweight state coppers and forgeries of English coppers in the years immediately following […]
Q&A: Is the 1848 “CAL.” Quarter Eagle a Private or Territorial Gold Issue?
The following Q&A is excerpted from Clifford Mishler’s Coins: Questions & Answers, 5th edition: Q: Is the 1848 gold quarter eagle that has CAL. punched in the field above the eagle on the reverse a private or territorial gold issue? A: Although the story of this unusual, and unusually valuable, gold piece is part of […]
Q&A: Are Darker-Than-Normal Wartime Nickels Rare?
The following Q&A is excerpted from Clifford Mishler’s Coins: Questions & Answers, 5th edition: Q: I have some nickels dated 1942, 1943, 1944, and 1945 that appear to be of a much darker color than normal. Each of these coins also has a large letter above the dome of Monticello on the reverse. Are these […]
Q&A: Is it Correct to Refer to the Eisenhower Dollar as a Silver Dollar?
The following Q&A is excerpted from Clifford Mishler’s Coins: Questions & Answers, 5th edition: Q: I often hear people refer to the Eisenhower dollar as a silver dollar, but am wondering if that is correct terminology, as any circulated examples of this coin that I have encountered appear to be made of a similar metallic […]
Q&A: What is the History Surrounding the Short Life of the Twenty-Cent Piece?
The following Q&A is excerpted from Clifford Mishler’s Coins: Questions & Answers, 5th edition: Q: What is the history surrounding the short life of the twenty-cent piece? A: The why of the twenty-cent piece has long and often been debated. It was envisioned on the one hand as a means of preventing short-changing that resulted from […]
