The Sept. 30 E-Sylum mentions two references on foreign coins manufactured by the U.S. Mint: an early 1960s monograph published by Whitman, and a Government Printing Office publication in various editions in the 1960s and '70s. Mention should also be made to "Foreign Coins Struck at Mints in the United States," by Philip Steiner and Michael Zimpfer. This book was published somewhat later and includes private mints. Another book, which I have not seen, is by Harry Scheerer (second edition, 1996). Perhaps another reader can supply further information.

The claim is sometimes made that the U.S. Mint struck the 1833 American Colonization Society coppers for Liberia, but this claim is probably in error. Congress first authorized the Mint to accept foreign coinage contracts in an act of 1874. The first undisputed foreign coinage by the U.S. Mint consisted of 1- and 2.5-centavo pieces dated 1876, for Venezuela. The Mint suspended acceptance of foreign contracts after 1983, when a final production for Panama took place, but an exception was made to mint the 2000-dated 1,000-kronur Leif Ericson commemoratives for Iceland.