United States Sesquicentennial coinage

The U.S. Sesquicentennial coin issue consisted of a commemorative half dollar and quarter eagle struck in 1926 at the Philadelphia Mint. Congress also allowed it to purchase 1,000,000 specially designed half dollars and 200,000 quarter eagles, which could be sold to the public at a premium. Both the quarter eagle and the halfdollar were struck in the maximum number authorized, but many were returned to the Mint for melting when they failed to sell. It has been estimated that the coin sold for $1.2 billion.

About United States Sesquicentennial coinage in brief

The U.S. Sesquicentennial coin issue consisted of a commemorative half dollar and quarter eagle struck in 1926 at the Philadelphia Mint. The obverse of the half dollar features portraits of the first president, George Washington, and the president in 1926, Calvin Coolidge. Congress also allowed it to purchase 1,000,000 specially designed half dollars and 200,000 quarter eagles, which could be sold to the public at a premium. The Commission had trouble agreeing on a design with Mint Chief Engraver John R. Sinnock, and asked Philadelphia attorney, arts patron and numismatist John Frederick Lewis to submit sketches. Both the quarter eagle and the halfdollar were struck in the maximum number authorized, but many were returned to the Mint for melting when they failed to sell. The Liberty Bell reverse was later reused by Sinnock on his Franklin half dollar, which was first minted in 1948. The half dollar designs were approved by the Fine Arts Commission on March 13, 1926, and were undoubtedly endorsed by the Mint on February 14, 1926. The quarter eagle designs were sent to the fine arts commission on February 13, 1925, and approved on February 15, 1925. The resultant plaster models were made by sculptor Robert J.

Grant, and sent to Mint Director Robert J Grant on December 11, 1925 for melting. The coin was struck on February 16, 1926 and was the only American coin to depict a president in his lifetime. It was struck to commemorate the 150th anniversary of American independence, and to raise money for the SesQuicentennial Exposition in Philadelphia, which took place in 1926 and 1927. It is the only coin to feature a portrait of a president on the obverse, as well as the Liberty Bell on the reverse. It has been estimated that the coin sold for $1.2 billion. The coins were struck to raise funds for the Exposition and the National Museum of American History in Washington, D.C., which opened in 1927. The first half dollar was struck in 1925 and the second half dollar in 1926. They were both struck by the minted Mint, but the Mint did not issue them until 1929 and 1930. The minting process was overseen by the Philadelphia-based Mint’s Director of Coinage, Charles C. Moore, who was also the Mint’s chief engraver at the time. The designs were submitted by Lewis, who served as president of the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts from 1906 until his death in 1932, but were not generally known for forty years.

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