Answer to a coin related question on the closed thread.

BillJones

I tried to steer us back to coins and I'll try again.

@bronco2078 said "Since all the statue of liberty issues are just bullion , that seems to show what people think of the idea. " I realize that this is a joke.

I believe that this issue sells at bullion due to the large mintage. I believe that the large mintage is due to the fact that the subject was popular and modern commems were still pretty new in the 1980s commanding greater collecting interest. Can we agree on this much?

Back in the 1986 the re-opening of the Statue of Liberty after it had be refurbished was big event. The commemorative coins sold very well. The $5 gold piece sold out completely, and the collector pressure on it was intense. At one point the three piece set that now sells for bullion was bid as high as $425. The other two coins followed suit. The six piece set in the wooden box was bid at over $800.

Then after the big re-opening celebration, everybody turned the page. The mintages were high and the demand went away.

sellitstore

Yes, I remember it well.

This is usually the pattern with modern issues and how I have explained it to many disappointed heirs.

"The interest (and prices) for these issues is highest at the time of issue and shortly after. Interest (and prices) often wane as we move our attention to newer issues." It's not what the owners want to hear but this is the usual pattern.

bronco2078

It was a big deal when they were fixing up the statue. They even worked it into the movie Remo Williams with a chase scene

BillJones

They had to bring a group of Frenchmen to do the copper sculpting work because there were no Americans who knew how to do it. The process involved hammering copper sheets over molds of the statue parts. A few of those Frenchmen decided to stay in the United States.

There were also a number of medalets that were made from the scrap copper that made up the original statue. Some of them were 100% pure “statue copper” and others were only 20%. I have one the toned very weirdly

The Paris Mint also issued Statue of Liberty commemorative coins in gold, silver and I think bronze. I have examples of the gold and silver pieces.

Kkathyl

Many varieties of Statue of Liberty. Here is one

Treashunt

The same thing happened with the GW commem.

1630Boston

Interesting history

JBK

@BillJones said:
They had to bring a group of Frenchmen to do the copper sculpting work because there were no Americans who knew how to do it. The process involved hammering copper sheets over molds of the statue parts. A few of those Frenchmen decided to stay in the United States.

There were also a number of medalets that were made from the scrap copper that made up the original statue. Some of them were 100% pure “statue copper” and others were only 20%. I have one the toned very weirdly

The Paris Mint also issued Statue of Liberty commemorative coins in gold, silver and I think bronze. I have examples of the gold and silver pieces.

The official committee also sold commemorative postal covers (envelope with picture, stamp, and postmark) that had a foil seal that used statue copper. They also sold rivets and chunks of marble from the base.

Sears also had little tokens made with statue copper (probably alloyed) and they included one with each catalog they sent out that year.