Coin Community Family of Web Sites Join Thousands of Coin, Bullion, & Money Collectors
Coin, Banknote and Medal Collectors's Online Mall Join Thousands of Coin, Bullion, & Money Collectors Royal Canadian Mint products, Canadian, Polish, American, and world coins and banknotes. Specializing in Modern Numismatics Shop for APMEX Bullion on eBay!Vancouvers #1 Coin and Paper Money Dealer 300,000 items to help build your collection!








Username:
Password:
Save Password
Forgot your Password?


This page may contain links that result in small commissions to keep this free site up and running.

Welcome Guest! Registering and/or logging in will remove the anchor (bottom) ads. It's Free!

Franklin Mint "Business Card" Coin Origin

To participate in the forum you must log in or register.
Author Previous TopicReplies: 3 / Views: 7,157Next Topic  
Valued Member
Isos's Avatar
United States
62 Posts
 Posted 07/03/2013  10:10 pm Show Profile   Bookmark this topic Add Isos to your friends list Get a Link to this Message Number of Subscribers
I know virtually nothing about the Franklin Mint (numismatic newbie), but this coin/business card was passed on to me by a family friend. Dated 1974. Do any of you know the story behind this? Thanks!

Franklin-Mint-

Franklin-Mint-

*** Moved by Staff to a more appropriate forum. ***
CCF Master Historian of USA Commemoratives
Learn More...
commems's Avatar
United States
12274 Posts
 Posted 07/03/2013  11:40 pm  Show Profile   Bookmark this reply Add commems to your friends list Get a Link to this Reply
The Franklin Mint (FM) was a private mint (in Pennsylvania) that was launched in 1964 and reached its peak in terms of popularity with coin/medal collectors during the mid- to late 1970s. Over this time, it struck a large number of collectible medals, tokens, ingots and other somewhat related collectibles (e.g., commemorative pewter plates), as well as coins for foreign governments. The FM struck collector coins / proof sets for Belize, the Bahamas, British Virgin Islands, the Cayman Islands, Jamaica, Panama, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines and Trinidad and Tobago (among others).

In 1973, the FM launched its own Museum of Medallic Art to display it various collectibles. I remember visiting the museum as a kid and enjoying the experience.

I believe the FM is still in business, but it is no longer an actual mint. The FM has changed hands over the years and is now basically a reseller of a variety of products (including some coins/medals) that it promotes as "collectibles."

Today, the collector base for most FM medals is fairly small and so most pieces do not sell for much over their melt value (if precious metal) or for more than a few dollars if struck in a base metal such as bronze.

Regarding your medal/business card...As you have probably surmised, it was handed out by members of the FM sales team to potential customers/accounts as a sample of the FM's work. Though an interesting souvenir of the FM during its prime, its value on the secondary market is fairly limited.

Hope that helps!


Collecting history one coin or medal at a time! (c) commems. All rights reserved.
Valued Member
Isos's Avatar
United States
62 Posts
 Posted 07/04/2013  1:09 pm  Show Profile   Bookmark this reply Add Isos to your friends list Get a Link to this Reply
Thanks, commems! That's some good background info. I had no idea that a private mint was providing for sovereign nations. Pretty wild.
Pillar of the Community
publius's Avatar
United States
807 Posts
 Posted 07/12/2013  3:33 pm  Show Profile   Bookmark this reply Add publius to your friends list Get a Link to this Reply
Oh, private minting for governments has been common for a long time. The most famous example might be the Boulton & Watt copper coinage of 1797 for Great Britain, but even before then, small change tokens were sometimes produced under "patent" by concessionaires, rather than by The Royal Mint. Be it noted, Franklin usually produced the circulation as well as the collector strikes for the coinages they executed.

Many small countries still farm out their coinage, either to a private contractor or to a national mint. The Japanese mint, for example, recently announced its first order for overseas coinage since the end of the Second World War : half a billion two-taka coins for Bangladesh. And that's not counting all the "collector" garbage companies like Pobjoy spit out.
  Previous TopicReplies: 3 / Views: 7,157Next Topic  

To participate in the forum you must log in or register.



    




Disclaimer: While a tremendous amount of effort goes into ensuring the accuracy of the information contained in this site, Coin Community assumes no liability for errors. Copyright 2005 - 2026 Coin Community Family- all rights reserved worldwide. Use of any images or content on this website without prior written permission of Coin Community or the original lender is strictly prohibited.
Contact Us  |  Advertise Here  |  Privacy Policy / Terms of Use

Coin Community Forum © 2005 - 2026 Coin Community Forums
It took 0.23 seconds to rattle this change. Forums