December 2007
FIRST SPOUSE COIN FRENZY DISSIPATES
Demand for the U.S. Mint's new series of half ounce gold coins honoring
former first ladies appears to have faded. As part of the legislation
authorizing the Presidential Dollar
series, a 24 karat half ounce gold coin honoring each first lady
is to be issued on the same schedule - 4 per year - as the
manganese-brass alloy dollar coins for each deceased former President
of the United States. For a President who was not married while
in office, the corresponding gold coin will feature a design with an
allegorical representation of Liberty.
The initial three "First Spouse" coins sold out on the same days sales
began (although there are a few reports of coins being received even
though ordered after the first day of sales). Sales of Dolley Madison
gold coins began November 19. As with the prior three coins in
the series, production is limited to 20,000 uncirculated and 20,000
proof pieces. The Mint limited orders to one of each option per
household for the first week. That limit has since been lifted, but as
of December 7, orders were still being accepted on the Mint's web site
for both options.
Reduced demand may be at least partly attributable to a price increase
of about $100 per coin. With gold topping $800 per ounce, the Mint set
prices at $509.95 and $529.95 for the uncirculated and proof Dolley
Madison coins, respectively. Also, quick sellouts for the earlier
coins in the series were fueled by speculation of quick profits for the
low mintage coins with higher initial ordering limits. Speculative
purchases of the Dolley Madison coin are clearly reduced compared to
the previous issues.
NUMISMATIC GIFT IDEAS
Looking for a holiday gift for the collector on your shopping
list? We have a large selection of great collector
coins, including individual coins and rolls of all state quarters
and Presidential dollars released during 2007, and paper
money in price ranges that meet most
budgets. We also offer many of the most popular collecting supplies and one of the
largest selections of numismatic books
available anywhere. If you're not sure which coin or note to get, books
about U.S. coins and paper money, world coins and paper money, ancient coins, token collecting, etc. are a great
alternative. More than a dozen titles have been added to our
inventory during the last few months.
With the high volume of packages shipped prior to the holidays, we
strongly recommend priority mail shipping for orders that are too
heavy to be sent by first class mail, which is the case for most orders
that include books or supplies or a larger number of coins. When
merchandise is loaded into our convenient online shopping cart, you
will be asked to select a shipping method. Our past experience is that
orders shipped by parcel post or media mail during December may take
two weeks or longer to be delivered. Therefore, please select "US
Post Office Priority Mail" if you need to receive your order in time
for Christmas.
CURRENT SPECIAL
Through December 19, we're adding one each 2007-P and
2007-D Utah quarters
in uncirculated condition free to orders of $45 or more placed with our
secure online shopping cart. More info about this offer is
available on our
Current
Special page.
2008 GOLD AND SILVER AMERICAN EAGLES
If you're interested in 2008 gold or silver American Eagles, please check our web site for price quotes beginning
in late December or early January. Due to the volatility of
precious metals prices, which are currently near 27 year
highs, we've decided to wait for a possible significant correction
before
pre-ordering the coins (which by law cannot leave the Mint until
January anyway). That way,
we'll be able to offer you the best possible prices. If prices do
not decline, we'll pre-order the coins in late December anyway, for the
usual delivery in early January. We'll begin quoting prices and
accepting orders
for 2008 bullion coins once we've locked in purchase prices.
Uncirculated 24 karat gold 2008 Buffaloes will also be offered when
released. Shipments of 2007 Buffaloes from the U.S. Mint
began in February.
HAPPY HOLIDAYS!
We wish you a joyous, safe and peaceful holiday season. Merry
Christmas and Happy New Year!
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Telesphere Numismatics
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