As the price of gold set an all time high, so did the prices for the United States Mint's First Spouse Gold Coins. On May 12, 2009, the US Mint raised product prices for the 24 karat gold coins to their highest levels ever.
The First Spouse Gold Coin series began in 2007 to accompany the Presidential Dollars series. One-half ounce gold coins were issued to honor each of the Nation's First Spouses in the order of the Presidencies. For any President who served without a spouse, a depiction of Liberty from a circulation coin of the era was reproduced for the obverse of the coin.
When the first coins of the series were released on June 19, 2007, the proof version of each coin was priced at $429.95 and the uncirculated version was priced at $410.95. Following the recent price increases, the proof versions now cost $779.00 and the uncirculated versions cost $766.00 each.
The rising cost of the coins has perhaps priced some collectors out of the series. The first three releases featuring Martha Washington, Abigail Adams, and Thomas Jefferson's Liberty each sold out of the maximum mintage of 40,000 coins. Sales levels have steadily declined for subsequent issues of the series with the most recently sold out coin featuring Anna Harrison selling a combined 9,787 coins. Starting with the 2010 releases, the US Mint cut the maximum authorized mintage level from 40,000 to 15,000 (20,000 for the Mary Todd Lincoln release).
There are currently five different issues of the series available for sale at the US Mint. The coins feature Letitia Tyler, Julia Tyler, Sarah Polk, Margaret Taylor, and Abigail Fillmore. The next issue featuring Jane Pierce is expected to go on sale June 3, 2010.
