Gorham Mint 13 Colonies

Thank you! I anticipate having a LOT of questions! :-)

I think there are two set, one in sterling. The seem to have been minted in 1974. There might also be an edition number on the inside of the lid, bottom right. Coin feature Benjamin Franklin - Pennsylvania, Nathaniel Greene - Rhode Island, Nathan Hale - Connecticut, Alexander Hamilton - New York, Charles Carroll - Maryland, Thomas Jefferson - Virginia, John Adams - Massachusetts, William Whipple - New Hampshire, Edward Rutledge - South Carolina, William Hooper - North Carolina, Lyman Hall - Georgia, John Witherspoon - New Jersey, Caesar Rodney - Delaware.

Yes

Your set of medals was issued by The Gorham Mint/Gorham Manufacturing Co. back in 1976. They make up what was referred to as The Liberty Memorial Collection. As you've seen, the set features commemorative medals representing each of the original 13 colonies. The maximum mintage for the collection was stated as 5,000, but I have never seen a final mintage for the set. Note: Final production figures for many medal sets sold during the bicentennial are lower than their advertised maximum mintage.

The set of 13 medals was sold with the display box/case you've shown, plus a booklet. (Does your set still have the booklet?) The medals were not encapsulated, just inserted into holes in the case. I've read that each medal weighs ~27.5 grams. If that's accurate, you would multiply that figure by 0.925 (since they are sterling silver) and divide the result by 31.103 (grams in a troy ounce) to get 0.82 troy ounce of silver per medal; the set of 13 would therefore contain about 10.66 troy ounces of silver. That would put the melt value of each medal at ~$20.00 (silver spot price of $24.41). As you have access to the medals, I would suggest weighing them yourself and then doing the math I've outlined if you get a different starting weight - I've read that the weights do vary slightly from medal to medal.

The recent run up in the spot price of silver has changed the market for these medals. About a year ago, one of the complete sets was sold for $250.00 plus $5.00 shipping - silver was under $15.00 per ounce at the time. There was a set recently listed on ebay at $477.00 - quite a price jump! Individual medals are being listed for over $20.00.

The comment above notwithstanding, your Gorham medal set is very collectible and it would sell for a premium over its melt value in most situations. One time it wouldn't would be if you brought the set to a coin dealer who does not do much business in medals. Such a dealer will typically offer less than melt value for the set as he/she would anticipate having difficulty selling it and/or might simply plan to send it off to a smelter.

If you look to sell the set, a direct collector-to-collector approach would be best in order to maximize your sale price - ebay is certainly one option.

Hope all that helps!

Well done, commems!