Commems Collection Questions: Answer #04 - Mintage Terminology/Unsold Coins

contagious asked:



@contagious: I am going to assume that by "official mintage" you are referring to the authorized mintage limit for a given coin. If I've guessed wrong, let me know.

When it comes to consideration of the mintage figures for a coin from the classic US commemorative coin series, five different figures need to be understood:

1. Authorized Mintage: "Authorized Mintage" refers to the maximum number of coins that can be struck per the coin's enabling legislation; the bill/Act that authorized nearly every US commemorative coin includes a maximum mintage specification. (To read about a few that did not specify a maximum limit, check out Quick Bits #22 - How Many Would You Like?)

2. Coins Struck: The maximum number of coins authorized was not always immediately ordered by the sponsor/struck by the Mint. The 1920 Maine Statehood Centennial half dollar, for example, had an "Authorized Mintage" of 100,000, but just 50,000 coins were struck (plus 28 coins for assay).

3. Assay Coins: During the classic era, a small number of coins were struck for each issue for inspection/testing by the annual Assay Commission to ensure the proper coinage specifications were being followed by the Mint. These coins were struck above and beyond the authorized mintage for a given coin and were used only for assay purposes - they were never released. Once the Commission had finished with them, they were destroyed/melted. Continuing with the Maine Statehood Centennial example, 28 coins (in addition to the 50,000 mentioned above) were struck for assay purposes; they were all melted after being inspected by the Assay Commission.

4. Returned/Melted Coins: When sponsors did not achieve the sales levels they projected, they often returned their unsold coins to the Mint whereupon they were eventually melted. For example, the 1922 US Grant Birth Centenary half dollar had just 100,000 of its authorized mintage of 250,000 produced, but the sponsor could not sell all of this original order and returned 28,400 unsold coins to the Mint.

5. Net Mintage: A coin's "Net Mintage" figure is determined by taking the "Coins Struck" figure and subtracting from it the "Assay Coins" and "Returned/Melted Coins" figures. For example, returning to the 1922 US Grant Birth Centenary half dollar, a total of 100,061 coins were struck, 61 were reserved for assay, 28,400 were returned to the Mint to be melted, leaving a "Net Mintage" of 71,600 available to collectors.


As mentioned under "4. Returned/Melted Coins," it was typical for a sponsor to return unsold coins to the Mint. By doing so, the sponsor received a credit or refund for coins returned and helped protect the original premium charged for the souvenir coin.

In a few cases, unsold coins were "dumped" into circulation by the sponsor. This practice was not typical, however, as it immediately became an issue for those who paid a premium (i.e., the sponsor's original selling price) for the coin vs. being able to get an example at face value. Here's a brief discussion of coins returned to the Mint to be melted: Quick Bits #45 - Circulation Dumps.


Please post any follow-up questions you have.


For other of my posts about commemorative coins and medals, including other Q&A posts, see: Commems Collection.