QUICK QUIZ: BABY COINS

PREV ARTICLE NEXT ARTICLE FULL ISSUE PREV FULL ISSUE

V16 2013 INDEX E-SYLUM ARCHIVE

The E-Sylum: Volume 16, Number 31, July 25, 2013, Article 12

Dick Hanscom forwarded this article about a coin honoring the new royal baby. I kind of like this one despite the hokey stork. The coloring isn't gratuitous - it conveys the gender of the child. The stork looks cartoonish in the image, but the coin looks great and I'd be curious to see one in person. See below for our quiz question. -Editor

Following the birth of His Royal Highness, the Prince of Cambridge, Pobjoy Mint has announced the release of three coins which have had a special privy mark added to them to congratulate the Royal Couple and to commemorate the historic occasion. The coins will be released on behalf of British Virgin Islands and South Georgia & South Sandwich Islands.

The announcement was made July 22nd in the traditional way that Her Royal Highness the Duchess of Cambridge had given birth to a baby boy who will be third in line to the throne of the United Kingdom. After the Prince was born, a proclamation signed by the doctors who delivered the Royal Baby was rushed from the ward, and displayed on an historic easel at the gates of Buckingham Palace, the same way the Duke of Cambridge’s birth was announced in 1982. This is the first time since Queen Victoria’s era that there have been three living male heirs.

Two coins will be issued from the British Virgin Islands. First released in 2012, one coin depicts the Duchess of Cambridge and the other the Duke of Cambridge both shown in their evening attire following their Wedding in 2011. A Privy Mark has been added to each coin showing baby footprints and the new Royal arrival’s date of birth. The footprints are coloured blue to represent the baby’s sex.

The third coin, which will be issued on behalf of South Georgia & South Sandwich Islands, is a coin which was first issued in 2012, showing the most anticipated moment of their Wedding Day, when the newly married couple displayed their love with a kiss on the balcony of Buckingham Palace to the delight of the millions spectators. The Privy Mark which has been added to this coin shows a stork delivering its precious bundle with the date of the birth. The stork is coloured blue to represent the baby boy.

So here's our quiz from Fred Michaelson: which U.S. coins include an image of a baby? For extra credit, name the baby. One coin should easily come to mind; Fred and I can think of at least three, of which two have names. For collectors outside the U.S., send us images of numismatic items featuring depictions of babies. -Editor

THE BOOK BAZARRE

A GUIDE BOOK OF CIVIL WAR TOKENS! The long-awaited new reference by Q. David Bowers: 448 pages of research dripping with American history. More than 2,000 full-color images. Detailed narrative. Valuations. Rarity ratings. Die illustrations, and more. Available next month; pre-order your copy today at Whitman.com (or call 800-546-2995). $24.95.