Nothing in recent years has done more to popularize coin collecting than the 50 State Quarter Program Act of 1997. This unique Act runs from 1998 until 2008 is easily the most popular minted coin series in the history of the U.S. Mint.
Beginning in 1998, five new state quarters are released each year for a ten year period with a new quarter released approximately every ten weeks. The quarters are minted for a ten week period and are never issued to the public again.
Borrowing a page from history a unique method of issuing the coins was devised. Each state quarter is issued according to when they became a part of the United States.
Each of the state quarters is minted with the image of George Washington on the front, or obverse, side of the coin but on the back, or reverse, side is a design based on something noteworthy about that particular state. Once the program is over in 2008 the normal eagle design will once again be on the reverse side of the quarter.
What makes this coin series different from all others in the past is that each state gets to select the design for their own state?s quarter with the Governor of each state determining the selection process. While some states appoint design committees other states like Michigan and Vermont have contests that any resident can enter.
In Missouri people voted via the Internet for their favorite design with almost 180,000 people voting while other states had the Governor making the final choice based on several designs.
Since these coins are in great demand and will never be minted again prices of the state quarters have been increasing and some of the early state coins are worth $1.00 or more depending on condition. A specialty area of coin collecting known as error coins has also been able to participate with some flawed coins going for up to $500.
A whole new business has cropped up revolving around the state quarters program with many products like specialty coin holders enjoying immense popularity. Probably the most familiar example of this would be the United States map quarter holder. These holders are in the shape of a map of the U.S. and have places in each state for that state?s quarter to proudly reside. They also usually have little state facts printed by them which make for a great learning experience.
The State Quarters Program is an ideal way for anyone wanting to start collecting coins to get their feet wet, especially youngsters. It?s easy, inexpensive and you get a little dose of history as well.
For more information on how to collect coins visit us at http://www.coincollectorsbasics.com/
Getting the Best Price for your Hammered Coins
If you have managed to get your hands on an old hammered coin then you may be surprised to find out exactly how valuable they are. For the past decade the price that hammered coins sell for has generally continued to rise, more so in portrait coins of Henry V111, EdwardV1, Elizabeth 1, James 1 and Charles 1 coins than many earlier including Celtic. Through being prudent in your approach to selling, you may find that someone will be willing to pay a very fair price.
American Elements to Mint Coins from Rare and Advanced Metals for ETF, Hedge Fund and Private Investor Reserves
Los Angeles based American Elements announced today the launch of AE Bullion?.
Rare Gold Coins Return 39.4 Percent on Investment, But Timing Is Everything, Reports a New Online Service
GPA for Coins reports that the certified coin market has shown overall strong growth in 2007, but median prices are where they were in the first quarter of 2006. However, the total gold coin segment has shown strong median prices steadily increasing to give a return of almost 40 percent for those who purchased in the first half of 2005.
The Franklin Mint Expresses Interest in Acquiring Recently Shipwrecked Coins from 'Black Swan'
The Franklin Mint, which recently offered treasure from the El Cazador shipwreck in one of the most successful sales of authentic coins in history, today announced its interest in pursuing discussions with Odyssey Marine Exploration (AMEX:OMR) to acquire all or part of the immense treasure trove of silver and gold coins recently discovered along with the "Black Swan" shipwreck.
The Growing World of Custom Challenge Coins
When someone hears or reads the term "challenge coin" a clear picture can't be formed because the term isn't quite clear, most people think and assume that a coin is just a coin. These special type of coin has a sentimental or historic value which can't be given to just any other object, they can be put on display to symbolize our connection to a particular event, they can also be worn as a necklace, be embedded in key chains, paperweights and even coffee mugs.
Making Money With Hammered Coins
With almost anything there is opportunities to make money and hammered coins are no different. For years specialist collectors of hammered coins have been able to make a fortune from buying and selling hammered coins; particularly Celtic hammered coins and English hammered coins.
What Is "Key", When Collecting Coins?
Key Coin: A coin that is among the toughest and Most Expensive to obtain within a series In the Lincoln Cent series, for example, the 1909-S VDB would be considered the key, as would the 1914-D and often the 1922-Plain
Cleaning coins ? Should you do it?
Allow me to guide through the aspects of Cleaning Coins.
The Monterey Company Adds New Geo-Coins to its Diversified Product Portfolio
The Monterey Company has added a new Geo-coin line to its extremely popular line of lapel pin and coin products giving its customers a total of 11 different coin product options to choose from.
Why You Need To Buy and Sell Gold Coins (Part 5)
Grading coinsThe condition of a coin is commonly summarized by a grade. Because the value of collectible coins often varies dramatically with grade and overly generous grading is not uncommon, reasonable grading proficiency is an important skill for collectors.
Coin Collection ? The Art Of Numismatics
The first known coin collector was Petrarch, who lived way back in the 15th century. A century later, Hubert Goltz visited a number of coin collectors throughout Europe and estimated that were approximately 960 collections in total. Numismatics gradually became a favorite hobby of royalty. Francis I of Austria wrote about his collection of gold coins in 1756. The British Museum established one of the first coin catalogues. From this have emerged more than 100 publications devoted to coin collecting.
Historical Silver Dollar Value Trends Reveal Coins Destined for Bullish Futures
Analysis of U.S. Peace silver dollars (minted 1921-1935) indicate only a few dates of this artistically acclaimed coin series are good bets to enjoy strong price advancements in the future. This conclusion is based on proven performance over a period of many years.
Fishbowl Inventory Software, the Fastest Growing Inventory Solution for QuickBooks, Boasts Third Consecutive Year of Over 275% Growth
Fishbowl Inventory, the premier inventory solution for QuickBooks users, announces they are sustaining a yearly growth rate of 275% for the past three years. ExpressTech International, the official name of the company, credits its spectacular success to the release of 4.6 last year, the great working relationship with Intuit, and the doubling of their workforce over the previous year. This winning combination continues to benefit customers. With upcoming product enhancements, it will make an already superior inventory control/supply chain solution that much better. For more information on Bidding on Challenge Coins and Alike
Every challenge coin collector is out there looking for the best deal on a challenge coin and there is no doubt going to a real estate sale is usually the best, not everyone can go to one. The next best thing is an online auction and there are so many but not for coins. You will find two sites on the website auctioning challenge coins and they are eBay and Challenge Coin Auctions .com. eBay is the one that everyone knows and shops. The latter is an upcoming auction people are starting to take notice of. Finding a deal is not the easiest thing out there because of the vastness and saturation of the market. People are just making coins just to make coins.
American Eagle Coins - Are They Worth it?
I would like to cover every aspect of the American Eagle Coins. In order to keep things short I have only included the major topics detailed as good as possible.