Post Your Coins Depicting Places!

Outstanding!

The Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC marked its 150th Anniversary in 1996.

1996 Smithsonian Institution Silver Dollar


Smithsonian Institution Castle - The Original Museum Building

(Image Credit: Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division. Public Domain.)

The Smithsonian Institution was originally funded by a bequest from the estate of James Smithson of England. When Smithson died in 1829, at the age of 64, his entire estate was inherited by his nephew - Henry James Hungerford. Smithson's will, however, included a provision that stipulated that if his nephew died childless, the estate would be used toward "an Establishment for the increase and diffusion of knowledge among men" - in the United States. Hungerford died in 1835, childless, and the rest is history!

The Act "To Establish the 'Smithsonian Institution' for the Increase and Diffusion of Knowledge Among Men" was signed into law on August 10, 1846. With the Act in place, the Smithsonian Institution began it journey to becoming a museum of world renown. Today, the vast SI complex includes 19 museums and the National Zoological Park.


For more of the story, check out:

- 1996 Smithsonian Institution 150th Anniversary

Here's another place in nature - 2005 US Statehood Quarter for California. The coin's design includes Half Dome and the Yosemite Valley in Yosemite National Park.


Half Dome and Yosemite Valley

(Image Credit: Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division. Public Domain.)

A famous Yosemite Park landmark, Half Dome is located in the eastern end of Yosemite Valley. The rock formation gets its name from its three smooth rounded sides and its prominent sheer face. It has an elevation of ~8,800 feet with a prominence (the distance between its summit and surrounding terrain) of ~1,360 feet.

For a look at a special folder for the coin prepared by Wells Fargo at the time of the coin's release, see:

- 2005 California Statehood Quarter

Another example of the home of a US President being featured on a coin - 1999 Dolley Madison Birth Sesquicentennial.



(Image Credit: Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division. Public Domain.)

Though most famously connected to the 4th US President, James Madison, the Montpelier home was originally built by James Madison Sr..circa 1764 when James was a teenager (future President James Madison was born March 16, 1751). Between 1797 and 1812, the younger Madison made several additions to the home and made it the structure we are familiar with today. It became his permanent residence after he returned following his second term as President in 1817. (Note: Montpelier was purchased by William duPont in 1901 - he made extensive renovations and enlargements to the property. The house, however, has been restored to its James Madison era appearance.)

The obverse of the coin presents a portrait of First Lady Dolley Madison at left-front, with "Madison's Temple" in the gardens of Montpelier in the background. (The "Temple" was a place for sitting, relaxing and reflecting. James Madison is believed to have had the "temple" built "to celebrate both knowledge and liberty" - from plaque at site.) The coin's reverse presents the front/main entrance of Montpelier framed by willow trees and other foliage.

The designs are the creation of Tiffany & Co. artists.


For more on the coin:

- 1999 Dolley Madison 150th Anniversary

The 1984 Silver Dollar for the Los Angeles Olympics presents a view of a place famous to most sports fans in the United States - especially to college football fans: the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.



Entrance to Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum

(Image Credit: Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division. Public Domain.)


The LA Memorial Coliseum was opened in 1921; it was built to be a memorial to Los Angeles' World War I veterans. It has a capacity of 77,500.

The Coliseum has hosted the 1932 and 1984 Olympic Games (and will host the Games again in 2028). It is the current home of the University of Southern California (USC) football team, and has previously hosted the Los Angeles Rams and Los Angeles Raiders of the National Football League (NFL). In addition, it temporarily hosted the Los Angeles Dodgers of Major League Baseball (MLB) when the team first relocated from Brooklyn, NY.


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

Hopefully, Manhattan Island in New York is an acceptable "place."



The Netherlands, in 2009, marked the 400th anniversary its early colonial efforts in North America and its specific connection to Manhattan Island with the issue of a circulating base-metal 5 euro coin along with a silver 5 euro and a gold 10 euro for collectors.

Each side of the coins feature a view of Manhattan Island. The obverse presents a view of circa 2009 Manhattan based on a satellite image from Google Earth. The reverse depicts how Manhattan Island is believed to have appeared in 1609 when the native Lenape were the primary inhabitants; the depiction is based on historical maps from the 1600s and research conducted by The Wildlife Conservation Society.

For more on the coin, see:

- 2009 Henry Hudson And Manhattan Island

Here's one from the modern US commemorative coin series that celebrates the United States National Anthem and includes a small depiction of Fort McHenry.



Aerial View of Fort McHenry National Monument and Historic Shrine, Baltimore, MD (Circa 1954)

(Image Credit: Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division. Public Domain.)

Fort McHenry, on the Whetstone Point (today Locus Point) in Baltimore Harbor, is an upgraded version of the earthen Fort Whetstone that was built to defend Baltimore during the American Revolution. It was upgraded with brick and stone masonry beginning in 1798 (completed in 1800) and renamed Fort McHenry in honor of James McHenry (an Irish-born immigrant who spent many years in/around Baltimore; he was a physician by training, but also a politician who represented Maryland at the Constitutional Convention in 1787 - his signature is found on the US Constitution - and later became Secretary of War within George Washington's administration).

Francis Scott Key was inspired by the fort's defense of Baltimore (September 13-14, 1814) against the British and, as a result, penned the words to what would later become the US National Anthem.