Release: MONDAY APRIL 23, 2021 Last year, about this time, I received a notice from a couple my wife and I had briefly met on our trip to Michigan. We barely recognized their name but it rang a bell. The card announced their son’s graduation from high school – a son we didn’t know. Nevertheless, the couple eagerly asked us to attend the event. I’ll admit, I am often a bit “thick.” It took my wife to alert me to the fact that their intent was to fish for a gift. A gift? Why would we send a present to someone we didn’t know?....
I’ve learned that’s now the way of the world. But, to what extent? There is a local TV commercial running with a father and son talking about his graduation. The father offers a few ideas for modest graduation gifts. Each time the son counters with the suggestion a new car.
Because gifts, lavish or not, are now expected for everything from baby’s first steps to Guy Fawkes Day, the pressure is on. A glance back at some previously appreciated items makes sense and might help – especially in 2021.
A century ago, silver dollars were everywhere and everyone carried them. Each contained 90 percent silver and weighed almost one ounce. Nine coins would be close to half a pound. That was a lot to carry in a pocket or purse. But, they did.
1921 was one of the most significant years for our silver dollars. Since 1878, the coin designed by artist George Morgan had featured the allegorical image of Lady Liberty with a stoic, full-figured face and a crown of flowers and leaves. In 1921 the government minted almost 87 million – the most of any year the silver dollar was produced.
That same year, Art Deco was becoming the new rage. It is described as a style with, “sleek and anti-traditional elegance symbolizing wealth and sophistication.” To embrace that, a new US “Peace” dollar was created and released.
The coin garnered its name because World War I – the war to end all wars – had recently ended and no one wanted to dream of any conflict of that magnitude again. The word “PEACE” was emblazoned on the reverse below a sleeker, standing bald eagle. On the front, a new Lady Liberty featured a thinner woman with her mouth slightly open, tousled hair and a spiked crown. The font for the wording and numbers was also noticeably more modern.
The two coins shared the same year but not the same mintage. The new PEACE dollar had a meager issuance of just over one million. In the collector world, that’s barely a handful.
Today, a pristine, top-grade but comparatively common 1921 Morgan dollar has a value of roughly $50 to $100. Conversely, a scarce/rare 1921 PEACE dollar in the same nice, uncirculated condition is valued between $500 to $1,500. In lower grades, either coin, of course, costs less.
This year, depending on the event and people’s personal budgets, 1921 silver dollars can be an excellent gift – certainly for graduations. They are silver and have an inherent centennial history for even hardcore modernists. Local coin dealers probably will have an excellent 1921 Morgan dollar in inventory. For the 1921 PEACE dollar dealers can probably obtain one given a little time.
There is – or will be – an interesting alternative. This being the 100th anniversary of the minting of both coins, the US Mint is producing two centenary restrikes costing around $90 and struck from pure silver. The designs will be identical to those struck 100 years ago with the significant difference that each will feature the current date of 2021. Several incarnations of the Morgan silver dollar will be made containing different mintmarks from Denver “D”; New Orleans “O”; San Francisco “S”; and Carson City “CC.”
Sadly, advance planning doesn’t appear to be a mainstay of the US Mint. The coins can’t be ordered until June – after most graduations have come and gone. Worse, they won’t be delivered until around October.
I suppose it’s never too early to start thinking about Christmas gifts. Jingle Bells.
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