By CoinWeek…
Since the Columbian Exposition Half Dollar, and continuing through the 2020s, U.S. coin programs have honored subjects ranging from basketball and military sacrifice to civil rights figures and educators. Some commemorative series offer one-off issues, while others are more ambitious in their construction. All commemorative coin series must be authorized by Congress, and with a self-imposed limit of two programs per year, great ideas are often sidelined in favor of coins that benefit key legislators or their constituents. At CoinWeek, we feel that honoring our nation’s history and accomplishments through coinage should be about the big idea, not the special interest. This is why we’ve selected three fantastic concepts that deserve to be struck on metal for the collector market.
The Solar System: Frontiers of American Space Science
Congress has passed legislation for the United States Mint to create coins to honor states and territories, national parks, American women, Native American contributions, Presidents and their spouses, and innovation. Why not also honor scientific discovery and our place in the universe with an ambitious multi-year program dedicated to our solar system? This series offers collectors an opportunity to hold planets and moons in their hands while bringing innovative and beautiful coins to the market.
Commemorating the Solar System directly honors American leadership in astronomy, space exploration, and planetary science. This theme aligns perfectly with successful ongoing programs like the American Innovation $1 Coin series, which has already recognized U.S. accomplishments in space, such as Mission Control in Texas and the Space Shuttle Program in Florida. The program’s core justification lies in recognizing these immense technological feats and inspiring future generations in STEM fields.
Proposed Coin Specifications
- The Gold Sun Coin: Gold has a long association with the sun due to its color, durability, and mythological and religious symbolism. A one-ounce or two-ounce gold coin would look stunning as the central piece of a solar system set.
- Silver Dollar Planets: Utilizing advanced minting techniques, the U.S. Mint could produce domed or curved planchets, replicating the spherical nature of planets, building upon the precedent of the curved National Baseball Hall of Fame coins. Rocky planets could be modeled after NASA images and surveys. Gas and ice giants could be produced with colorized surfaces that match the look of their iconic forms. Also represented on dollars would be Pluto, Eris, and Ceres, three prominent dwarf planets.
- Clad Moons: 50¢ clad half dollars would be used to honor the solar system’s 18 major moons and the two irregularly shaped moons of Mars.
The United States Postal Service (USPS) Commemorative Set
The USPS is a foundational American institution, established prior to the formation of the nation itself. Affordable mail delivery provided America with a continuous chain of communication and commerce that was vital to the country’s development and unity. So important was the Postal Service to the nation, that the mandate to create it and postal roads was granted in Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution.
The proposed multi-denomination set would include design concepts that span the institution’s history and current mission and could be sold alongside commemorative limited edition stamps to create a truly unique collectible.
- The Clad Half Dollar could focus on the modern postal carrier or the ubiquity of the blue delivery vehicle, representing contemporary service.
- The Silver Dollar could prominently feature the iconic Pony Express rider, symbolizing early, essential communication across the country and referencing existing historical USPS memorabilia.
- The $5 Gold Half Eagle should appropriately honor the foundational institutional role of the USPS, potentially featuring Benjamin Franklin, the first Postmaster General, as depicted on the 1847 5¢ stamp that bears his likeness. The coin’s reverse could reproduce the first Postal Seal, which was used 1782-1837 and featured an image of the Roman god Mercury.
Lou Gehrig: A Legacy of Greatness and Integrity
Lou Gehrig may have been the greatest Yankee to ever put on the pinstripes. Known as “The Iron Horse,” the left-handed Gehrig played 17 seasons for his hometown Yankees, where he set a then-unbreakable record of 2,130 consecutive games played. He posted a career batting average of .340, along with 493 home runs and 1,995 RBI, all while leading the Yankees to six World Series championships. Gehrig wore the number 4, which coincided with his place in the batting order. For much of his career, Gehrig batted cleanup behind the “Sultan of Swat,” Babe Ruth.
Gehrig’s playing days were tragically cut short. Eight games into the 1939 season, his power and mobility gone, the Yankee Captain took himself out of the lineup after batting just .143. He never played again. A battery of tests at the Mayo Clinic revealed a diagnosis of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Gehrig and his wife were given the devastating news on his 36th birthday: he had less than two years to live.
On July 4, 1939, the Yankees held a dramatic retirement ceremony for Gehrig. Teammates, past and present, honored their captain. Unable to hold back tears, Gehrig and Ruth embraced in front of more than 61,000 in attendance. Gehrig delivered what many consider the Gettysburg Address of baseball, where, despite his bad break, he called himself “the luckiest man on the face of the earth” and told the crowd that he had “an awful lot to live for.” At the ceremony, the Yankees retired his number 4, making him the first player in Major League Baseball history to have his number retired.
With his playing days over, Gehrig slid out of the spotlight. He accepted an appointment from Mayor La Guardia to serve as a New York City parole commissioner—a position he took seriously and held until a month before his passing.
- A Silver Dollar could be issued at an All-Star game to commemorate Gehrig’s dual legacy. The obverse could feature a classic, heroic portrait of Gehrig. The reverse, however, should pivot to the humanitarian cause that defines his later life. Instead of focusing solely on baseball achievements, the reverse should incorporate symbols representing the fight against Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), a disease frequently referred to as Lou Gehrig’s disease.
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