Ever wonder where famous coin portraits came from? (Eye Candy Alert!)

[RWB]

The head of Victory from the Sherman Memorial was not only the basis for the 1907$10 coin (previously a cent design) but was the prototype for the 1921 Peace dollar. Jim Fraser loaned deFrancisci a copy of the bust to use in making his Liberty portrait. (The sculptor's wife posed for him largely to get the hair right.)

 

In 1911 and 1912, Fraser made more than a dozen nickel-size electrotypes so he could show the Secretary of the Treasury what his Indian portrait would look like on a coin.

 

The only new coin design issued between 1907 and 1921 that was not influenced by Saint-Gaudens was Brenner's portrait of Abe Lincoln's coat on the cent.

[leeg]

Very interesting research.

 

Roger makes a great point about "junk" and "stories" on the internet. Be careful out there.

 

 

[WoodenJefferson]

Informative Post of the Year.

[PocketArt]

Great post WingedLiberty1, and wonderful follow up's by contributors! Very insightful, interesting, and fun read. Good knowledge.

 

 

[WingedLiberty1]

 

On June 20, 1945, about four million people jammed onto the streets of New York City for a World War II victory parade. Buried in the the crowd was a young artist and junior U.S. Mint engraver, Frank Gasparro (1909-2001) hoping for a glimpse of his hero, 5-Star General Dwight D. Eisenhower. Towards the end of the parade, Frank did get a brief glimpse of his hero, and that one fleeting moment changed future U.S. numismatic history.

 

As soon as he returned to the U.S. Mint in Philadelphia, Gasparro made a sketch that captured Eisenhower's strong and determined gaze. Twenty-Six years later that sketch became the inspiration for one of America's most legendary modern coins – the Eisenhower Dollar.

 

The story of the Eisenhower Dollar starts with the Apollo 11 space mission. On July 20, 1969, Apollo 11 astronaut Neil Armstrong became the first person to set foot on the moon. With America caught up in "space fever", the U.S. Mint looked for a way to honor this world-changing moon-landing event and it needed a coin as impressive as the achievement itself. So the one-dollar coin was resurrected. That large coin size/denomination hadn't been used since 1935, the final year of the Peace Silver Dollar.

 

At the same time, the Mint wanted to honor Dwight D. Eisenhower, who died shortly before Apollo 11. Since as president, Eisenhower helped create NASA -- and without his vision, the moon landing might never have happened -- Eisenhower and Apollo 11 became the perfect match for this coin. So Frank Gasparro began work on mating his old 26 year old sketch of Eisenhower with the Apollo 11 Mission Insignia to create this new coin.

 

The Eisenhower Dollar was minted from 1971 through 1978. However there are no Eisenhower Dollars dated 1975, since that entire year was used to strike the 1976 bicentennial dollars which had a special reverse featuring the Liberty Bell. Special 40% Silver Ikes were struck for Collectors at the San Francisco mint throughout the series. These coins were basically unloved and little used during their short run, but have been undergoing a collector resurrection in recent years due to their large size, low cost, and short run making collecting the complete set a relatively low cost endeavor.

 

However it should be noted that extremely high-grade business strikes are quite rare and expensive due to their low field populations -- PCGS lists MS67 business strikes as having a fair market value of between $4,000 and $15,000 each, depending on the year. High grade proofs remain very low priced however.

 

Frank Gasparro working on a proposed Liberty Head Design Dollar Coin in 1977

[RWB]

"... one of America's most legendary modern coins – the Eisenhower Dollar."

 

Interesting -- I thought they were real and not legends....

 

Wish Ike had kept his hat on for the coin, though.

[Nutmeg Coin]

th

A Winged Victory statue, that very closely resembles St. Guaden's design for the double eagle, sits across from the Plaza Hotel on Central Park South. I pass it every day going to work.

 

Very cool information in this thread and great pictures to illustrate!

 

Is this the stature to which you are referring? This is most often given as the prototype for both of the St. Gaudens designs. St. Gaudens' early sketches had a pair of wings on Ms. Liberty. They were removed from the final design.

 

 

Yeah, I think this is what Carl Sandburg had in mind (or the statue of McClellan) in this poem: http://carl-sandburg.com/ready_to_kill.htm

[WingedLiberty1]

"... one of America's most legendary modern coins – the Eisenhower Dollar."

 

Interesting -- I thought they were real and not legends....

 

Wish Ike had kept his hat on for the coin, though.

 

, i hear you!

 

It's that pesky 3rd definition of the word "legendary" ... 3.) famous or notorious

 

I do agree about the hat though!

[WingedLiberty1]

 

Coin is a PR66BN (not mine) of provenance "Larry Shepherd Collection".

 

From internet searches ...

 

The two-cent piece was designed by James B. Longacre and was produced for circulation from 1864 to 1872 and for minted for collectors only in 1873. Mintages steadily decreased each year.

 

The obverse design is a Longacre version of the Great Seal of the United States. His design focuses on the shield, or escutcheon, as a defensive weapon, signifying strength and self-protection through unity. The upper part of the shield (or "chief") symbolizes Congress, while the 13 vertical stripes (or "paleways") represent the states. Consequently the entire escutcheon symbolizes the strength of the federal government through the unity of the states.

 

The crossed arrows represent nonaggression, but imply readiness against attack. The laurel branches, taken from Greek tradition, symbolize victory. In heraldic engraving, vertical lines represent red, clear areas white and horizontal lines blue, thus the escutcheon is (in theory) colored red, white, and blue and is meant to evoke the American flag.

 

Art historian Cornelius Vermeule deemed the two-cent piece "the most Gothic and the most expressive of the Civil War" of all American coins. "The shield, arrows, and wreath of the obverse need only flanking cannon to be the consummate expression of Civil War heraldry."

 

Longacre's two-cent piece was the first coin inscribed with "In God We Trust". The motto was popularized by the new coin; on March 3, 1865 Congress passed legislation ordering its use on all coins large enough to permit it. Since 1938, "In God We Trust" has been used on all American coins.

 

The background of the motto (from what I have read) is as follows. In late 1861, Reverend Mark Watkinson of Pennsylvania, wrote to Treasury Secretary Chase and Mint Director Pollock, proposing that some reference to God be placed on the coinage "in this time of Civil War". Several motto's were considered, including "God Our Trust" and "God and Our Country". He later wrote "the motto on each, such as all who fear God and love their country, will approve." Chase responded that it should be changed to read: "IN GOD WE TRUST." Pollock had been inspired by The Star Spangled Banner, a later stanza of which includes the line, "And this be our motto, In God Is Our Trust". Chase may have also been influenced in his decision by the motto of his alma mater, Brown University, which read In Deo Speramus (In God We Hope).

[brg5658]

WingedLiberty,

 

If you haven't already, you should really consider picking up a set of the Burdette Renaissance of American Coinage books. There are three -- Red, White, and Blue...covering 1905-08, 1909-15, and 1916-21 respectively. Much of the information you'll find on the internet about coin designs for that period is oft-repeated fable. All three are available from Wizard Coin Supply, and they are ~$50 each. The Vermeule book is also worth owning if you have a genuine interest in the history of the artistic designs of coinage of the United States.

 

Best, Brandon

 

[WingedLiberty1]

WingedLiberty,

 

If you haven't already, you should really consider picking up a set of the Burdette Renaissance of American Coinage books. There are three -- Red, White, and Blue...covering 1905-08, 1909-15, and 1916-21 respectively. Much of the information you'll find on the internet about coin designs for that period is oft-repeated fable. All three are available from Wizzard Coin Supply, and they are ~$50 each. The Vermeule book is also worth owning if you have a genuine interest in the history of the artistic designs of coinage of the United States.

 

Best, Brandon

 

I will do that!. Sounds like a great reference. It's an interesting subject.

[RWB]

WL1 - If you want autographed copies, just ask. There's no extra charge from Wizard Coin Supply. [RWB, the author....]

[brg5658]

WL1 - If you want autographed copies, just ask. There's no extra charge from Wizard Coin Supply. [RWB, the author....]

 

RWB -- the author of the RWB series...easy to remember.

[WingedLiberty1]

Really sketchy info on the Barber coinage inspiration. Best I can come up with is the design was a modified version of what was being used in France. I have to admit the nose and chin are very similar, but I think the ultimate "tell" might be the lips (which are both really unusual and nearly identical on the two coins). If anyone knows anything more or anything different please post! I need to get that book!! .

 

[WingedLiberty1]

A nice summary poster of my feeble undertaking ...

 

 

[RWB]

Barber's 1891 subsidiary silver coin designs are generic French-classic imitations. It's doubtful that he used any specific prototype. That accounts for the puffy appearance of liberty's cheek and the "Grecian" nose.

 

According to George Morgan, live models rarely posed for the engravers - they worked from photos and existing copy busts. TR was one of the few Presidents to permit Barber to sketch his likeness. Wilson told the mint to work from a few photos.

[mark]

WingedLiberty:

 

That poster is WAAAAAAY cool!

 

Mark

[WingedLiberty1]

Barber's 1891 subsidiary silver coin designs are generic French-classic imitations. It's doubtful that he used any specific prototype. That accounts for the puffy appearance of liberty's cheek and the "Grecian" nose.

 

According to George Morgan, live models rarely posed for the engravers - they worked from photos and existing copy busts. TR was one of the few Presidents to permit Barber to sketch his likeness. Wilson told the mint to work from a few photos.

 

This is great info! So it sounds like I got "semi close" at least with the French connection. I can see why you wrote books on this subject as it's really interesting.

 

What do you know about the Seated Liberty design? That has to be one of the oddest designs in the 1800's -- it just always looked off to me (in terms of proportion and scale).

[RWB]

Director Robert Patterson asked painters Titian Ramsay Peale and Thomas Sully to prepare new designs for circulating silver coins. Evidently, they were asked to use a seated liberty motif for the obverse and a flying eagle for the reverse. William Kneass also sketched a seated Liberty version.

 

Christian Gobrecht revised and simplified the designs and used that for the 1836 dollar obverse and Titian Peale's reverse with olive branches omitted.

 

There is also a slide set titled "Models of Liberty on Our US Coin Design types" on the internet but I don't have the URL handy. It was created by Arno Safran in July 2006 with an original title of "The Coins of 1796."

[BillJones]

This is strictly a guess on my part, but I think that that the profile on the Barber coinage bears a resemblance to the young head Queen Victoria coins. William and Charles Barber were British immigrants.

 

[jpcienkus]

Very interesting thread.

 

WingedLiberty, I really like the poster you made. Thanks for starting this thread.

 

I always felt the Barber coinage was more romanesque than a french/greek hybrid. Thank you RWB for your insights and knowledge on the designs. This was/is a very good read.

[WingedLiberty1]

Yes, I see some resemblance. Looks like multiple source influences at work with the Barber.