How I Created the Manufacturing Triad of the U.S. Mint® (version 3.0)
DrDarryl
Posts: 616 ✭✭✭✭✭
A few images first...
An early version:
Baseline 3.0 Version:
Version 3.0 with emphasis on "special medals for U.S. Government agencies":
CIA = Central Intelligence Agency
DoC=Department of Commerce
DoI=Department of the Interior
POTUS=President of the United States
sGm= special Government medal (simplification of "special medals for U.S. Government agencies")
Why the importance of the Manufacturing Triad of the U.S. Mint® ?
It provides a high-level mechanism to organize the manufactured products produced by the U.S. Mint®. More importantly, it provides evidence of the not well known "function 3" to manufacture.
It validates the research that resulted in the 2013 discovery, organization, formation, and naming of an entire U.S. Mint® series by a numismatic researcher not employed by the U.S. Mint®. Emphasis is made on the term "entire". See potus-sgm.com/
It also aids to explain why other special medals from three U.S. Government agencies are not documented in public records. (Note: U.S. Government procurement documents are not shared with the public).
It provides evidence that not all U.S. Mint® manufactured products require legislative approval. (The Director of the Mint approves the manufacturing order to produce the procurement request made by the U.S. Government agency.)
It aids in filling in the gaps in collecting U.S. Mint® products (of the past).
The Department of the Interior sGm (left to right bronze, silver, gold, and gold). Designer Gilroy Roberts.
Central Intelligence Agency sGm:
Gilroy Roberts' hallmark:
Frank Gasparro's hallmark:
POTUS sGm:
Paris Summit sGm awarded by President Eisenhower. Designer Frank Gasparro. Many were destroyed after the failure of the 1960 Paris Summit.
Newport sGms awarded by President Eisenhower (note the period article). Designer Frank Gasparro. 
Partial 1959 Eisenhower presentation set (missing White House envelope). Designer Gilroy Roberts. 
Comments
Well... that is informative... Cheers, RickO
I don't believe "the triad" is a good way of illustrating the various Mint products (if that's actually your goal).
Why break out medals for special government agenices from national medals when many other large and significant categories of medals could also be broken out of this category?
"National medals" is also a confusing category name considering that the "National Commemorative Medals of the US Mint" series is already well scoped by various authors. National medals or medals of national character is how the Mint defined them, but could be confusing now since it's not as well defined as the National Commemorative Medal series.
Why group all coins: circulation, collector, and foreign into one very broad category?
It's good to be simple, but if that's important then two categories, coins and medals, would be better.
Very interesting. Thank you for sharing your work!
National medals required an enacted US federal law to define the requirements of the medal, this includes but is not limited to establishing the design elements, fixed mintage limit, metal composition, issue date, sales period, etc. These medals are funded through public sales or by other government funding. Public records exists of enacted US federal law authorizing the US Mint to manufacture each national medal.
Special government medals require no US federal law for the medal itself. All one needs is approval by the Director of the Mint to manufacture via a letter. The design, mintage, metal composition, delivery date, are all at the direction of the Director of the Mint and the acquiring agency. These medals are funded by the US government agency making the purchase.
As for the grouping. The clutter analysis uses the term "manufacture" as it's focus. A coin is coin, made for commerce, collector, another nation or the US. It still has a denomination.
Thanks for the read.
Here is a great example of a historic special Government medal and outstanding numismatic find. The sGms required no Congressional approval nor Presidential approval for the US Mint to manufacture. The approval came from the Director of the Mint under the function to manufacture special medals for US Government agencies.
If you remember your history lessons and recall the cold war escalation between the USSR and the US in May 1960, you will be astounded that three gold medals and thirty silver were prepared for a successful May 1960 Paris Summit, however they were recalled and later destroyed by the US Treasury.
Note the notes on the MS Powerpoint slide image (presented at ANA's World Fair of Money a few years back). The slide is based on information from a book I wrote. One can draw a conclusion that Ike was still positive on the outcome of the Paris Summit even after a US U-2 spy plane was shot down while in USSR airspace on May 1, 1960.