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50-531: Offered in 1/10 oz , 1/4 oz, 1/2 oz, and 1 oz denominations, these coins are guaranteed by the U.S. government to contain the stated amount of actual gold weight in troy ounces . By law, the gold must come from sources in the United States, alloyed with silver and copper to produce a more wear-resistant coin. In addition, sales of these and other specie coins from the US Mint are mandated, at least in part, to pay off

100-504: A "Type I" or a "Type II" version, where on all coins the "S" mint mark is either "filled" (also known as the "blob" mint mark) or "clear". 1964 has a design variation where the President's portrait on the Kennedy half-dollar has "accented hair". The design was modified early in the production (reputedly at the request of Jacqueline Kennedy ) to give the hair a smoother appearance. This resulted in

150-467: A box and each of the five coins was sealed in a cellophane bag. 1955 saw both the original "box" packaging and introduced the flat-pack, where the coins were sealed in cellophane and presented in an envelope. The flat-pack packaging continued through 1964, after which the coins were sealed in various styles of hard plasticized cases. (From 1965 to 1967 the production of proof sets was suspended and Special Mint Sets were made in their place. They were made at

200-525: A hybrid product, "special mint sets", none of which are particularly valuable. From 2005 through 2010 the U.S. Mint used a special "satin finish" on the coins in its uncirculated sets , but in 2011 changed to a "brilliant finish" so that contact marks incurred during the normal production process would be less noticeable. The Philadelphia and Denver mints also sold annual "souvenir sets" from their gift shops since 1973 (1972 for Denver). These are not mint sets and generally not of high collectable value, although

250-449: A mirror finish. Several other methods have been used in the past to achieve this effect, including sand blasting the dies, and matte proofs. Proof coins of the early 19th century even appear to be scratched, but it was part of the production process. The term "proof" refers to the process by which the coins are made and not to the condition of the coin. Certification agencies can grade and assign numerical ratings for proof coins. A PR70 coin

300-459: A penny with no mint mark. Not as rare (or as expensive) are proof sets issued with coin varieties that are less common than those found in other sets issued in the same year. These include the 1960 and 1970-S sets, both of which are found in either a "small date" or "large date" variety, which refers to the size and position of the date on the Lincoln cent. The 1979-S and 1981-S sets each come in either

350-517: A portion of the mintage of cents in the early 1980s. The dollars and quarters bear a mint mark of an "S", but the cents are otherwise indistinguishable from those minted at Philadelphia (which bear no mint marks, unlike those years' proof cents from San Francisco and circulation cents from  Denver ). From 1973 through 1981 the dollar was also included, and also from 2000 on. The 1999–2008 proof sets also contain five different 50 State quarters . The 2004–2005 series also contain

400-419: A proof striking usually involved polishing of the dies. They can usually be distinguished from normal circulation coins by their sharper rims and design, as well as much smoother "fields"   — the blank areas not part of the coin's design. The dies for making modern proof coins are often treated with chemicals to make certain parts of the design take on a frosted appearance, with the polished fields taking on

450-539: Is backed by the United States Mint for weight and content. The obverse design features a rendition of Augustus Saint-Gaudens ' full-length figure of Lady Liberty with flowing hair, holding a torch in her right hand and an olive branch in her left, with the Capitol building in the left background. The design is taken from the $ 20 Saint-Gaudens gold coin which was commissioned by Theodore Roosevelt to create coins like

500-510: Is considered to be sufficiently approximated by 31.10 g in EU directive 80/181/EEC. The Dutch troy system is based on a mark of 8 ounces, the ounce of 20 engels (pennyweights), the engel of 32 as. The mark was rated as 3,798 troy grains or 246.084 grammes. The divisions are identical to the tower system. The pennyweight symbol is dwt . One pennyweight weighs 24 grains, and 20 pennyweights make one troy ounce. Because there were 12 troy ounces in

550-524: Is much greater and is mainly dictated by their weight and the price of precious metal . For example, on September 13, 2019, the U.S. Mint sold the 2016 one-ounce coin ($ 50 face value) at $ 1,510.00. Since the coins can be "paid" only at a disadvantage to the payer, they are generally held as collectibles rather than money, and for US taxpayers are subject to a high capital gains tax rate unless held in an individual retirement account . In addition to standard bullion coins (sometimes referred to as "scruffies"),

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600-413: Is the highest grade possible for a proof coin and indicates a perfect example, with PR69 and lower grades reflecting some deficiency in the strike, centering, details, or other aspect of the coin. Most proof coins are double struck under higher pressure. This does not normally result in doubling that is readily observable, but does result in the devices being struck fully, resulting in intricate elements of

650-531: The People's Bank of China has previously used troy measurements in minting Gold Pandas beginning in 1982; since 2016, the use of troy ounces has been replaced by integer numbers of grams. The troy pound (lb t) consists of twelve troy ounces and thus is 5 760 grains ( 373.241 72 grams). (An avoirdupois pound is approximately 21.53% heavier at 7 000 grains ( 453.592 37 grams), and consists of sixteen avoirdupois ounces). A troy ounce weighs 480 grains . Since

700-652: The Royal Mint were produced for preservation. Gold coins were omitted from proof sets produced for the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II . After decimalization , proof sets were heavily marketed internationally. The U.S. had largely stopped striking proof coins in 1916, although a few later specimens exist. From 1936 to 1942, proof coins could be ordered individually from the United States Mint . Beginning in 1950, customers could order proof coins only as complete sets . From 1950 to 1955, proof sets were packaged in

750-592: The San Francisco Assay Office but bore no "S" mint mark .) Sets struck from 1936 to 1942 (1942 offered a five-coin and a six-coin version, the latter included the silver wartime nickel ) and from 1950 to 1972 include the cent , nickel , dime , quarter , and half dollar . Since 1975, the San Francisco Mint has been used almost exclusively for proof coinage, with the exception of the  Susan B. Anthony dollar  from 1979–81 and 1999, and

800-423: The grain , the pennyweight (24 grains), the troy ounce (20 pennyweights), and the troy pound (12 troy ounces). The troy grain is equal to the grain unit of the avoirdupois system, but the troy ounce is heavier than the avoirdupois ounce, and the troy pound is lighter than the avoirdupois pound. Legally, one troy ounce (oz t) equals exactly 31.1034768 grams. Troy weight is generally supposed to take its name from

850-543: The statutes of uncertain date from the reign of either Henry III or Edward I , thus before 1307, specifies " troni ponderacionem "—which the Public Record Commissioners translate as "troy weight". The word troni refers to markets. Wright's The English Dialect Dictionary lists the word troi as meaning a balance , related to the alternate form 'tron' which also means market or the place of weighing. From this, Watson suggests that 'troy' derives from

900-470: The "accented hair" variety being somewhat rarer and commanding a premium over the "regular" variety. Since 1992 the mint has struck proof sets in both silver and base metal. Also, "Silver Premier" sets, featuring deluxe packaging, were offered from 1992 to 1998. U.S. commemorative and bullion platinum , palladium , gold , and silver coins are also often issued in both uncirculated and proof types, sometimes with different mint marks . From 1992 to 2018,

950-490: The 1 troy oz coin except for the markings on the reverse side that indicate the weight and face value of the coin (for example, 1 OZ. fine gold~50 dollars ). The print on the smaller coins is, therefore, finer and less legible than on larger denominations. The 22k gold alloyed makeup of Gold Eagle coins stands in contrast to the 24k Gold Buffalo Coin , which is minted entirely from .9999 fine gold, and therefore weighs less (1 troy oz or 31.1035 grams gross). The market value of

1000-511: The 12-ounce troy pound in the 19th century. It has been retained, though rarely used, in the American system. Larger amounts of precious metals are conventionally counted in hundreds or thousands of troy ounces, or in kilograms. Troy ounces have been and are still often used in precious metal markets in countries that otherwise use International System of Units (SI), except in East Asia . However,

1050-558: The 1982 and 1983 sets are in demand, since no "official" mint sets were issued during those years. Sales of the souvenir sets ended in 1998 with the launch of the 50 State quarters. Finally, individual dealers have made unofficial "year sets", privately packaging all denominations of a certain date. The latter have no value beyond their individual coins. Members of the public should be careful to understand what products they are being offered, and that, until supplies are exhausted, current and previous mint and proof sets are available directly from

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1100-576: The French market town of Troyes where English merchants traded at least as early as the early 9th century. The name troy is first attested in 1390, describing the weight of a platter, in an account of the travels in Europe of the Earl of Derby . Charles Moore Watson (1844–1916) proposes an alternative etymology: The Assize of Weights and Measures (also known as Tractatus de Ponderibus et Mensuris ), one of

1150-456: The U.S. Bicentennial was issued. From 1971 to 1974, proof silver-clad Eisenhower dollars were issued in a plastic case contained in a brown wood-grain finish slipcase box, and are referred to as "Brown Ikes". Proof Susan B. Anthony dollars were struck in 1999. Although these proof dollars were sold separately and not included in the proof sets for that year, some third parties used the cases from other years to create 1999 proof sets that include

1200-635: The United States Mint also produces proof and uncirculated versions for coin collectors . These coins carry the Mint's mark ("W") beneath the date, and are produced exclusively at the West Point Mint in West Point, New York (formerly the West Point Bullion Depository). These final audited mintages from the U.S. Mint include coins sold both individually and as part of multi-coin sets. During

1250-518: The allocation of blanks for the legally required production of bullion Gold Eagles affected both uncirculated coin and proof availability. This suspension continued into 2010 for the uncirculated version. When production resumed in 2011 (without the fractional denominations which had been discontinued in 2008), it was met with a weak collector response. The United States Mint provided audited and finalized annual production sales reports between 2006–2012. Afterwards, they published production sales numbers in

1300-400: The ancient Greek and Roman coins. From 1986 to 2021, the reverse design by sculptor Miley Busiek Frost (MB) featured a male eagle carrying an olive branch flying above a nest containing a female eagle and her eaglet. Frost says that her eagle design of the family of eagles is “ a symbolic tribute to the American family, senior citizens and young people . Frost’s design drawing was sculpted for

1350-657: The coins is generally about equal to the market value of their gold content, not their face value. Like all commodities, this value fluctuates with market forces. The face values are proportional to the weights except for the 1/4 oz coin. While their actual selling price (purchasing power) varies based on the spot price of gold, these coins carry face values of $ 5, $ 10, $ 25, and $ 50. These are their legal values, reflecting their issue and monetized value as "Gold Dollars", as opposed to standard bullion. They are legal tender for all debts public and private at their face values. These face values do not reflect their intrinsic value which

1400-558: The continent. The troy ounce and grain were also part of the apothecaries' system . This was long used in medicine, but has been largely replaced by the metric system (milligrams). The only troy weight in widespread use is the British Imperial troy ounce and its American counterpart. Both are based on a grain of 0.06479891 gram (exact, by definition), with 480 grains to a troy ounce (compared with 437 + 1 ⁄ 2 grains for an ounce avoirdupois). The British Empire abolished

1450-401: The difference between these and proof sets. These are uncirculated coins that have been specially packaged, and are generally neither as expensive nor as valuable as proofs. There are some exceptions, however. Those produced from 1947 to 1958 (none were made in 1950) were double sets packaged in cardboard holders and have good collector demand. Because mint sets contain specimens from each mint

1500-489: The dollar, prompting the U.S. Mint to advise the public that these sets were not government-issued sets. A proof "Coin & Chronicles" set was issued for 2009, which included one each of the 4 different Lincoln Cent designs and a commemorative Lincoln Silver Dollar, presented in special packaging. Other sets, called "Prestige Proof" sets, also contain selected commemorative coins . These sets were sold from 1983 to 1997 (except 1985) at an additional premium. As Legacy Proof sets,

1550-466: The five cent, dime, and half dollar coins. Proof sets containing only 2009 cents, 50 State quarters, America the Beautiful quarters, Presidential dollars, and American Innovation dollars are also available. The U.S. Mint has also released special proof sets, such as in 1976, when a proof set of three 40% silver-clad coins: the quarter, half-dollar and dollar coins depicting special reverses to commemorate

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1600-506: The form of British pre-decimal pennies, in which pounds, shillings, and pence were indicated using the symbols £ , s , and d , respectively. There is no specific 'troy grain'. All Imperial systems use the same measure of mass called a grain (historically of barley ), each weighing 1 ⁄ 7000 of an avoirdupois pound (and thus a little under 65 milligrams). Mint masses, also known as moneyers' masses , were legalized by Act of Parliament dated 17 July 1649 entitled An Act touching

1650-475: The implementation of the international yard and pound agreement of 1 July 1959, the grain measure is defined as precisely 64.798 91   milligrams . Thus one troy ounce = 480 grains × 0.064 798 91 grams/grain = 31.103 476 80 grams. Since the ounce avoirdupois is defined as 437.5 grains, a troy ounce is exactly 480 ⁄ 437.5 = 192 ⁄ 175 or about 1.09714 ounces avoirdupois or about 9.7% more. The troy ounce for trading precious metals

1700-558: The initials JN and RG on each side of the eagle head design. Norris explains her design inspiration as follows: “ The American Eagle is such a noble bird. I was hoping to capture the intensity of his stare through the close cropping. His gaze speaks of pride and wisdom passed down through generations of time. ” Gold Eagles minted 1986–1991 are dated with Roman numerals . In 1992, the U.S. Mint switched to Arabic numerals for dating Gold Eagles. The 1 ⁄ 10 , 1 ⁄ 4 , and 1 ⁄ 2 troy oz coins are identical in design to

1750-462: The manner of weighing by balance precious goods such as bullion or drugs; in contrast to the word 'avoirdupois' used to describe bulk goods such as corn or coal, sometimes weighed in ancient times by a kind of steelyard called the auncel . Troy weight referred to the Tower system ; the earliest reference to the modern troy weights is in 1414. The origin of the troy weight system is unknown. Although

1800-606: The monies and coins of England . A grain is 20 mites, a mite is 24 droits, a droit is 20 perits, a perit is 24 blanks. The troy system was used in the apothecaries' system but with different further subdivisions. Proof coinage Proof coinage refers to special early samples of a coin issue, historically made for checking the dies (as in demonstrating that something is true) and for archival purposes. In modern times, proofs are often struck in greater numbers, especially for coin collectors ( numismatists ). Nearly all countries have issued proof coinage. Preparation of

1850-614: The name probably comes from the Champagne fairs at Troyes , in northeastern France. English troy weights were nearly identical to the troy weight system of Bremen . (The Bremen troy ounce had a mass of 480.8 British Imperial grains.) Many aspects of the troy weight system were indirectly derived from the Roman monetary system . Before they used coins, early Romans used bronze bars of varying weights as currency. An aes grave ("heavy bronze") weighed one pound . One twelfth of an aes grave

1900-474: The national debt. The 22 kt gold alloy is an English standard traditionally referred to as " crown gold ". Crown gold alloys had not been used in U.S. coins since 1834, with the gold content having dropped since 1837 to a standard of 0.900 fine for U.S. gold coins. For American Gold Eagles the gold fraction was increased again to .9167 or (22 karat ). It is authorized by the United States Congress and

1950-485: The old troy pound, there would have been 240 pennyweights to the pound (mass) – just as there were 240 pennies in the original pound-sterling . However, prior to 1526, the English pound sterling was based on the tower pound , which is 15 ⁄ 16 of a troy pound. The d in dwt stands for denarius , the ancient Roman coin that equates loosely to a penny. The symbol d for penny can be recognized in

2000-435: The original die being present on the proof that may not be present in such detail on circulation strikes. After being struck, they are separately and individually handled, in contrast to normal coins which are collected in bins. William Wellesley Pole undertook the first rigorous attempt to catalog the coinage of Great Britain and Ireland starting in about 1816. Starting that year, proof specimens of coins and medals struck at

2050-438: The practice was resumed from 2005 to 2008. Occasionally, there are errors which escape the Mint's inspection process, resulting in some very rare and expensive proof sets. This has happened at least seven times: 1968-S, 1970-S and 1975-S and in the 1983-S Prestige set, each with a dime that has no mint mark; a small number of 1971-S sets included a nickel without a mint mark; 1990-S saw both regular and Prestige sets which included

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2100-615: The precious metal value of the coins in a mint set could exceed the value of a proof set for common dates. Another exception is the 1996 mint set, which, in addition to specimens from the Philadelphia and Denver mints, contained a Roosevelt dime from the West Point mint (commemorating the 50th anniversary of the Roosevelt dime) and which was available only in this mint set. From 1965 to 1967 the mint did not sell proof or uncirculated coins, but only

2150-582: The reverse of the Gold Eagle by US Mint sculptor - engraver Sherl Joseph Winter (JW). Hence, on the reverse of these coins, the initials MB and JW are inscribed. In 2021, the US Mint introduced a new reverse design on the American Gold Eagle featuring a close-up head portrait of an eagle. This design was created by US Mint artistic designer Jennie Norris (JN) and sculpted by US Mint medallic artist Renata Gordon (RG). Hence, Gold Eagles from 2021 onwards, show

2200-414: The series' inaugural year, the Mint only issued 1 troy oz proofs. It added 1 ⁄ 2   troy oz proofs in 1987 and since 1988 has issued proofs in all four denominations. In 2009, due to increased worldwide demand for precious metals that caused supply shortages and the Mint's legal obligations to produce bullion versions, proof and uncirculated versions of the Gold Eagle were not issued. In 2009,

2250-411: The silver coins in silver proof sets contained “coin silver,” 90% silver and 10% copper, the same silver content as coins minted through 1964. Beginning in 2019, silver coins in silver proof sets were issued in “fine silver,” 99.9% silver, the same silver content as silver bullion coins. Starting in 1947 the U.S. mint began producing "mint sets", and because of the terms used there is some confusion over

2300-700: The two Lewis and Clark nickels . The 2007–2016 proof sets also include Presidential dollars . The 2010-2021 proof sets also contain America the Beautiful quarters , depicting different National Parks and Monuments. Proof sets issued in 2009 contain 18 coins   — the most ever included   — as that year featured four different reverses for the Lincoln Cent, six quarters issued under the District of Columbia and United States Territories quarters program, four Presidential and one Native American dollar struck that year, and

2350-513: The weekly cumulative sales reports. The mintage number is the Last Known Sale (LKS), which is the last sales figure published for that product before it was dropped from the sales report. Troy ounce Troy weight is a system of units of mass that originated in the Kingdom of England in the 15th century and is primarily used in the precious metals industry. The troy weight units are

2400-579: Was based on, and virtually identical with, the pre-1824 British troy ounce and the pre-1707 English troy ounce. (1824 was the year the British Imperial system of weights and measures was adopted; 1707 was the year of the Act of Union which created the Kingdom of Great Britain .) Troy ounces have been used in England since the early 15th century, and the English troy ounce was officially adopted for coinage in 1527. Before that time, various sorts of troy ounces were in use on

2450-479: Was called an uncia , or in English, an "ounce". Before the adoption of the metric system, many systems of troy weights were in use in various parts of Europe, among them Holland troy, Paris troy, etc. Their values varied from one another by up to several percentage points. Troy weights were first used in England in the 15th century and were made official for gold and silver in 1527. The British Imperial system of weights and measures (also known as Imperial units )

2500-405: Was established in 1824, prior to which the troy weight system was a subset of pre-Imperial English units . The troy ounce in modern use is essentially the same as the British Imperial troy ounce (1824–1971), adopted as an official weight standard for United States coinage by act of Congress on May 19, 1828. The British Imperial troy ounce (known more commonly simply as the imperial troy ounce)

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