NEW BOOK: AMERICAN GOLD AND PLATINUM EAGLES

Whitman Publishing announces the release of American Gold and Platinum Eagles: A Guide to the U.S. Bullion Coin Programs, by Edmund C. Moy, retired director of the United States Mint. The 224-page hardcover book will be available November 26, 2013, online and from bookstores and hobby retailers nationwide. It can be pre-ordered at www.Whitman.com. The retail price is $29.95.

Since 1986 the hugely popular .9167 fine American Gold Eagle bullion coins have been collected by numismatists, stockpiled by investors large and small, and treasured by gold buyers throughout the United States and around the world. American Platinum Eagles were added to the Mint’s bullion offerings in 1997, and today are a best-selling way to add .9995 fine platinum to investment portfolios, in addition to being collectible themselves.

Now, no less an expert than Edmund Moy—director of the U.S. Mint from 2006 to 2011—shares his unique insight and perspective on these beautiful pieces of Americana.

To create this book, Moy has drawn on his experience directing the Mint during a turbulent period of unprecedented growth, when silver, gold, and platinum bullion sales skyrocketed during the Crash of 2008 and the Great Recession. He takes the reader behind the scenes at the U.S. Treasury Department and into the back rooms and offices of the U.S. Mint. He lays out the history of America’s gold and platinum bullion programs; explores the foundations and nuances of investing in precious metals; and shares his insight on fascinating topics like the Langbord family’s 1933 double eagles, the recently proposed $1 trillion platinum coin, and the Mint’s 2009 Ultra High Relief gold masterpieces.

Edmund Moy brings together diverse elements—artistic as well as technical, some steeped in history and others inspired by the latest news headlines, appealing to investors as well as collectors—to make American Gold and Platinum Eagles a valuable addition to every American’s bookshelf.

“Just counting the one-ounce American Gold Eagles, collectors and investors have purchased more than 15 million coins since 1986,” said Whitman publisher Dennis Tucker. “Add to that millions of the smaller fractional-ounce gold coins, and the Mint’s Proofs and other collector formats, plus the platinum series with its historical designs. American Gold and Platinum Eagles is the world’s first book-length study of these popular coins.”

Contents include:

• A foreword by Representative Michael Castle, who coauthored the legislation that created the State quarters program, as well as the Mint’s platinum bullion coinage.
• Chapter 1: The Gold Rush of 2008. Meetings with Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson. The surge in bullion demand. Uncharted territory. The Mint’s leap into high production.
• Chapter 2: Bullion Coin Investing: The Basics. The different values of gold. 21st-century specie. Making the investment decision. Ways to hold precious metal. Allocated vs. unallocated holdings. Types of bullion coins. What is coin grading, and why should I care? The emerging market of .9999 pure-gold bullion coins. Forces driving the price of gold. Will gold go up or down? How to buy U.S. Mint bullion coins. The Mint’s Authorized Purchasers program. Selecting a retailer. Pricing factors. Storing precious-metal bullion purchases. What is a Gold IRA? Selling precious-metal bullion coins.
• Chapter 3: History of the U.S. Gold Bullion Coin Program. The heyday of circulating U.S. gold coins. Spending money in the 1800s. Gold in history and culture. The fabulous Saint-Gaudens gold coins. The end of gold in circulating U.S. coinage. President Roosevelt’s Executive Order 6102. Fort Knox and the gold assets of the United States. The 1933 double eagles. The Gold Reserve Act of 1934. World War II and beyond. The birth of the bullion market. The Gold Bullion Coin Act of 1985. Achieving exemplary gold bullion coins. The American Buffalo and First Spouse bullion coin series. The bull run of 2008. The 2009 Ultra High Relief. Supply and demand challenges.
• Chapter 4: History of the U.S. Platinum Bullion Coin Program. The birth of the platinum series. The $1 trillion platinum coin proposal. Commemorative designs for the Proof American Platinum Eagles. The design process for American coins. A commentary by Chief Justice of the United States John G. Roberts Jr.
• Chapter 5: A Year-by-Year Study of American Gold and Platinum Eagles. Individual coins, varieties, and sets. High-resolution photographs, rarity information, values, certified-coin populations, surface and strike characteristics, market details, packaging information, issue prices, and more.
• Featuring: Illustrated overviews of other coins in our nation’s bullion programs, including American Buffalo and First Spouse gold coins and American Silver Eagles.
• Plus: Compiled charts for easy coin-by-coin comparisons; a glossary of numismatic terms; a bibliography for further research; and an index for looking up information.
• And: A richly illustrated gallery and catalog of all the coins issued during Edmund Moy’s directorship of the U.S. Mint.

American Gold and Platinum Eagles: A Guide to the U.S. Bullion Coin Programs By Edmund C. Moy, director of the U.S. Mint (ret.) Foreword by Representative Michael Castle 224 pages, hardcover, 8.5 x 11 inches Fully illustrated in color ISBN 0794839738 Retail $29.95

Wayne Homren, Editor

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