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The "Sacawageas" that should have been.

braddickbraddick Posts: 23,976 ✭✭✭✭✭
in U.S. Coin Forum
Congress had many opportunities to select a winning coin design for our new "golden dollar" and they landed on the Sacawagea. For reasons discussed many times here, the coin itself is a failure, although can be fun to collect in its many varieties.
For the public though I think the coin caused just enough confusion as to make it unpopular after its initial release (and "flash in the pan" fascination and speculation).
The Gallery Mint, on the other hand, submitted what I believe to be winning designs that would have captured the publics interests and would have (after the intitial hoarding) produced a 'spendable' dollar coin.
What do you think? I believe it's the Sacawagea that should have been.

image
image

peacockcoins

Comments

  • gmarguligmarguli Posts: 2,225 ✭✭
    I'm sorry, but those just aren't politically correct and don't cater to any special interest group. They'll never work.

    Liberty on the first coin looks angry. The reverse is OK.

    We should have had something like the Amazonian patterns for our new dollar.
  • asnookerasnooker Posts: 246
    I think it's the size that has been the problem. Americans love the Morgan and Peace Dollars. They will never accept a dollar coin that is the size of a quarter! If they want to produce a dollar coin then make it the size dollar coins are suppose to be. Otherwise they feel cheated. It HAS to be bigger than the 50cent coin.
    If you give up your rights, in order to maintain your freedom. You will most likely end up losing both!
  • pontiacinfpontiacinf Posts: 8,915 ✭✭
    fugly
    image

    Go BIG or GO HOME. ©Bill
  • mdwoodsmdwoods Posts: 5,546 ✭✭✭
    Nice coins, I like the brass one especially. mdwoods
    National Register Of Big Trees

    We'll use our hands and hearts and if we must we'll use our heads.
  • paigowjohnnypaigowjohnny Posts: 4,257 ✭


    << <i>Americans love the Morgan and Peace Dollars >>



    They like them now as collector's items, but didn't like them for commerce back when they were issued...with some exceptions like Montana and other western states.

    As for Sacs...melt 'em all, I say !!
  • gmarguligmarguli Posts: 2,225 ✭✭
    I think it's the size that has been the problem. Americans love the Morgan and Peace Dollars. They will never accept a dollar coin that is the size of a quarter! If they want to produce a dollar coin then make it the size dollar coins are suppose to be. Otherwise they feel cheated. It HAS to be bigger than the 50cent coin.

    The public hated the Ike dollar and it was big.

    What Americans really love is the PAPER dollar. The dollar coin can be any siz, shape, and color, but it will always fail if we still have the paper dollar.
  • asnookerasnooker Posts: 246
    The Ike dollar had an ugly bald man on it. I think it came out when our President was a Handsome, popular, young man, from a different party affliation, didn't it? I hated it because it was a butt ugly coin. I mean UGLY!!!!!! We need a coin that is bigger than a fifty cent piece with a beautiful new depiction of Liberty and the flying eagle.
    If you give up your rights, in order to maintain your freedom. You will most likely end up losing both!
  • littlewicherlittlewicher Posts: 1,822 ✭✭
    Coin 1, looks like Liberty is having a terrible hair day. Coin 2, I kind of like. It's not completely appealing, but much better then the Sacajawea design.


    For some life lasts a short while, but the memories it holds last forever.
    -Laura Swenson

    In memory of BL, SM, and KG. 16 and forever young, rest in peace.
  • cdmeadcdmead Posts: 121
    Hey Asnooker -

    If I remember correctly, the Ike debuted in 1971.

    Richard Nixon was a lot of things, but handsome, young and Democrat don't come to mind... image
    There's nothing in the rule book that says an elephant can't pitch.

    image
  • asnookerasnooker Posts: 246
    LOL I didn't have a book handy to look it up......if that's when it came out, I guess we were just tired of ugly old men LOL It was still a butt ugly coin!
    If you give up your rights, in order to maintain your freedom. You will most likely end up losing both!
  • StigmataStigmata Posts: 55
    Truthfully I like the 2nd one if I had to choose. The obverse on the 2nd is very plain though, but I love the reverse.
  • asnookerasnooker Posts: 246
    Don't forget the Country was torn about the Vietnam war at the time the Ike came out. Who wanted an ugly, old, bald General on a coin? Not very many of us. I supported the troops and the war at the time, my Brothers both served, but history has proven us wrong. I still stand by my belief, if the mint would make a dollar coin as large as they are suppose to be or close, it would be a success! It just has to be bigger than a 50cent piece and has to have a new beautiful Liberty on it. Like the one in the second picture ( but she looks like she's weariing glasses, doesn't she?) England has Britannia.....We have Lady Liberty Let's put her on the dollar coin! Show the world.. we stand for Liberty!
    If you give up your rights, in order to maintain your freedom. You will most likely end up losing both!
  • richbeatrichbeat Posts: 2,288 ✭
    I like the designs, but I'm with gmarguli. No dollar coin of any size will be truly successful until the paper dollar is eliminated. image
  • Conder101Conder101 Posts: 10,536 ✭
    I have an example of the second coin and the scan doesn't do it justice. It looks much better than that. One interesting thing about these "Patterns", the portrait profile is hubbed but the hair and lettering etc is all hand engraved into the dies including the hair.
  • DoubleDimeDoubleDime Posts: 632 ✭✭✭
    The eagle reverse looks like a Mexican coin.
  • MacCoinMacCoin Posts: 2,544 ✭✭


    << <i>What Americans really love is the PAPER dollar. The dollar coin can be any siz, shape, and color, but it will always fail if we still have the paper dollar. >>


    you got that right! as lone as there is a paper dollar no one wants to use the dollar coin.
    image


    I hate it when you see my post before I can edit the spelling.

    Always looking for nice type coins

    my local dealer
  • PetescornerPetescorner Posts: 1,220 ✭✭
    Both of those look pretty neat to me. Does anybody have an idea what slabbed modern pattern/concept coins like those are worth?
  • Conder101Conder101 Posts: 10,536 ✭
    I paid about $130 for mine. It's in an ICG slab as a MS-68.

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