The E-Sylum:  Volume 11, Number 12, March 23, 2008, Article 17

SAINT-GAUDENS NATIONAL HISTORIC SITE HOPES MINT PRODUCT FUELS INTEREST

[The Saint-Gaudens Double Eagle design is getting another
workout.  The Union Leader of Cornish, NH published an
article interviewing Henry Duffy, curator at the Saint-Gaudens
National Historic Site, about the new version of the artists'
coin design being prepared by the U.S. Mint.  -Editor]

The United States Mint has announced it will recreate a $20
gold coin designed by Augustus Saint-Gaudens in 1907, and a
curator hopes the new version of the coin will attract more
visitors to the famed American sculptor's former estate in
Cornish.

Considered by many to be the most beautiful coin ever made
in the United States, the high-relief Liberty Gold Piece,
also known as the Double Eagle, bear the image of a woman
holding a branch and a torch on one side.

"Liberty's torch represents knowledge, and the branch
represents victory," said Henry Duffy, curator at the Saint-
Gaudens National Historic Site on Route 12A in Cornish. "Of
course, the knowledge she's spreading is democracy. She's
spreading democracy to the world." The back of the coin
features an eagle flying under the sun. On the re-issued
coin, the inscription "In God We Trust" will appear above
the sun, as it did on a 1908 version of the same coin.

The design will be featured on a collectible 24-karat
coin intended for sale to the public in 2009. Duffy said
the mint originally planned to release the coin in 2007,
its 100th anniversary, but original molds had been
destroyed, which delayed the process.

Duffy said visitors to the historic site often ask how
they can acquire one of Saint-Gaudens' coins.

"They're usually disappointed when they found out how much
they are," he said. "This will be helpful to us to be able
to recommend this to people, so I'm sure people are going
to like that." Duffy said he thinks the new coins will be
a hit among seasoned and new coin collectors and may even
draw more visitors to the historic site in Cornish.

"There's a lot of interesting intrigue and mystery around
these coins right now," he said.

To read the complete article, see:
Full Story

[Numismatic News commented on the planned pieforts, basically
a revival of the ultra-high-relief Saint-Gaudens $20 design.
I've never been a fan of dusting off old designs for new coins,
but in this case it sounds like a winning concept, assuming
the Mint indeed remains faithful to the artist's original
conception. -Editor]

The dream of President Theodore Roosevelt and artist Augustus
Saint-Gaudens to restore the artistry of ancient Greece to
American coinage may be realized in 2009 when the Mint plans
to strike ultra-high-relief Saint-Gaudens $20 gold pieces for
collectors.

Now without the constraints of commerce, the Mint will attempt
a 27mm coin with a thick planchet... The French have a term
for a double thickness planchet. It is called piefort and
collectors in Europe and elsewhere find coins struck on these
planchets appealing.

The new pieces will be 24 karat, or .999 fine, eliminating
some of the hardness of a gold coin, which in 1907 was struck
with a .900 fine gold alloyed with copper. They will also
contain an even troy ounce of gold, making them conform to
the demands of 21st century collectors and bullion coin buyers.

To read the complete article, see:
Full Story

  Wayne Homren, Editor

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