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| HK-1031 |
United States
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SC$1 1920 HK-1031 WILSON DOLLAR - GOLD MANILA MINT OPENING ALLEN-M3
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Philippines - 1920 HK-1031 Gold SC$1 Wilson Dollar / Manila Mint Opening - Allen #M3
Mintage 8 or more (Eight known to have been certified, possibly with crossover)
The gold so-called “Wilson Dollar” was very likely struck at the Philadelphia mint, but may have been struck in Manila to commemorate the opening day of the Manila Mint in the Philippines.
The obverse is dominated by the portrait of President Woodrow Wilson who is identified only as the “PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES.” It was designed by George T. Morgan and is a slightly abbreviated version of the obverse design found on the United States Assay Commission Medals of 1919, 1920, and 1921.
The female figure on the reverse is often assumed to be Liberty, since this is a Mint medal associated with U.S. coinage. Noted numismatist and polymath, Dr. Gilbert S. Perez was present at the Philippine Mint on July 15, 1920 for the opening ceremonies and identified her as Justice in the October 1920 issue of The Numismatist, probably because of the scales she is holding in her right hand. Neither of these are correct however. The reverse (also designed by Morgan) actually depicts "Juno Moneta" protecting and instructing a novice in the art and science of coin production. Juno Moneta is the Roman Goddess of Good Counsel, whose name means "Advisor" or "Warner", a very appropriate choice for a medal commemorating the opening of a mint. The design of the reverse is a modified mirror image of a design Morgan used on the U.S. Assay Commissions Annual Medals in 1882-1885, 1890, and 1892.
According the The British Museum, "The origins of the modern English words 'money' and 'mint' lie in ancient Rome. In the period of the Roman Republic, from about 300 BC onwards, coins were made near the temple of the goddess Juno Moneta. It was located on the Capitol (the modern Campidoglio), the citadel of Rome. The goddess's name, Moneta ('Warner' or 'Reminder') eventually came to refer to the place where the coins were made, the 'mint', and to its product, 'money', both of which derive ultimately from the Latin word moneta."
The design of the medal was first credited to Clifford Hewitt by Dr. Perez in 1921 when he published his first person accounting of the events in Numismatic Notes And Monographs No. 8, The Mint of the Philippine Islands in which he stated Speaker Osmeña of the House of Representatives [...] struck off the first medal (designed by Mr. Clifford Hewitt) which was issued in commemoration of the opening. Ever since then, that credit has been propagated by many other authoritative sources until it became accepted as fact. The medal was certainly struck under the direction of Mr. Hewitt, but the design elements and engraving credit clearly belong to George T. Morgan whose initial even appears on the base of Wilson's bust on the obverse and and to the right of Juno's left foot on the reverse.
Clifford Hewitt, devoted several years of his life to bring the Mint of the Philippine Islands to life. He designed the equipment, assembled it, shipped it to Manila through the Panama Canal, and spent seven month installing it and training the Filipino staff in the art and science of coin production. All of this effort came to fruition on July 15, 1920 with the striking of the first One Centavo coins and these "So-Called Dollars." Given the scope of Hewitt's responsibility and involvement, it seems quite likely that he was also involved in and responsible for a medal to commemorate the opening. Although we know he did not create the elements or execute the engraving, Hewitt may have conceived the idea for combining these particular elements into a single medal which would symbolize the successful completion of the mint. This too could be considered design.
Upon successful completion of his work in Manila, Hewitt spent the next 12 years in Shanghai China establishing the Chinese Central Mint. Unlike Manila, Hewitt's time in China is well documented and even includes descriptions of his design work on the new coinage. The obverse featured a profile of Nationalist founding leader Sun Yat-sen, and a classic Chinese junk, or boat, with two sails backed by the rays of the sun on the reverse. These too were images prescribed by the Chinese Government, but were likely composed into a coin by Hewitt. Hewitt certainly considered himself the designer of the new dollar sized silver coin, and by extension the Mint Completion Medal of 1930, which shared its most prominent design features: I completed the Chinese Mint and put it into full operation March 1933, with a coin designed by myself with Dr. Sun Yat-sen’s profile on the obverse and a typical Chinese junk on the reverse, which is now the coinage of the Chinese Government. Hewitt’s initials, CH, can even be found to the right of Sun Yat-sen’s shoulder on the medal’s obverse.
Unfortunately, the details of any conversations between Clifford Hewitt and Dr. Perez will never be known, but Hewitt's design of the Manila Mint Opening medal could be very similar to his design of the medal for Chinese Central Mint opening which followed ten years later.
3,700 of these medals were stuck in bronze, 2,200 in silver. The price of these medals to the public was one peso for the bronze and two pesos for the silver, and these prices remained unchanged for the 21 years that they were available from the government. A small quantity was also struck in gold, but exactly how many and where they were struck is still a subject of much speculation.
The gold medals were created as presentation pieces and as such were struck at least three times to fully strike up the detail. This multiple striking led to some slightly noticeable doubling of the devices. The number stuck in gold is most commonly quoted as five, although six are known to have been certified by the grading services. One of the gold pieces was presented to President Woodrow Wilson (who was suffering from a stroke at the time), one to Newton D. Baker the U.S. Secretary of War, and three (or possibly more) were retained in the Philippines and for many years and presumed lost during World War II. One uncertified example is said to exist in the The Money Museum of the Central Bank of the Philippines. Many very knowledgeable dealers also maintain that even more uncertified examples exist, so how can this be?.
Coin World magazine reported in January 2012 that an obverse die had been discovered in the estate of a U.S. Army warrant officer who served in the Pacific Theater during World War II. According to his typewritten account, the mint in Manila was bombed and left wide open for looting. While others were scavenging silver bars, he only picked up the obverse die. The die was examined by several well known numismatists and authenticated as genuine. Since these dies were obviously never canceled, it is possible that other gold medals could have been struck "off the books" at the mint at any time in the 1920's or 1930's. This could account for the expanded number of gold medals that seem to exist.
The 1934 report of the Treasurer states that 1,053 of the silver and 2,117 of bronze medals remained unsold at the end of calendar year 1934. Treasury reports from 1935-1938 do not provide the same level of detail as in 1934, but they do state the combined total value in pesos of all of the mint opening medals remaining unsold at the end of each calendar year. That makes it possible to speculate on approximately how many of each remained at the end of 1938. Unfortunately, I do not have access to Treasury reports for 1939-1941, so 1938 is as far as I can reasonably go. Demand for these mint opening medals rose sharply when the Commonwealth of the Philippines was born in 1935 and the three commemorative coins were issued in 1936. At the end of 1938, less than 700 silver medals and less than 1800 bronze medals remained in the treasure. This represents about 30% of the silver and 48% of the bronze medals, so it is very likely that 1,500 to 1,600 silver medals and 1,800 to 2,000 bronze medals may have escaped being dumped into the Pacific Ocean in 1942 to keep them from falling into enemy hands when Japan invaded the Islands. These pieces were salvaged after the war but were corroded by the exposure to sea water, and are often sold as “sea salvaged.” Many of those that escaped the ravages of the salt water have been cleaned, so pristine, unadulterated examples are relatively rare, particularly in bronze.
CERTIFIED GOLD MEDALS
The MS62 specimen was sold by Heritage Auctions in April 2008 for $69,000 in their Signature Coin Auction #1104 as Lot 2531. It then reappeared three months later at the Heritage US Coin Signature Auction #1114 as Lot 2151 where it sold for $74,750.
The PCGS AU55 first appeared at the Lynn Knight auction of the Dr. Gregory Pineda collection in June 2012 with cert. #24592857, and sold for $41,400. It then reappeared at the Heritage 2013 January 6-7 Ancient & World Coin Signature Auction - New York #3021 as Lot 22446 and sold for $44,062.50. Sometime after this sale this medal was re-holdered with the new cert. #83784389.
References
- Coins, Medals and Tokens of the Philippines 1728-1974 by Aldo P. Basso, second edition Bookman Printing House, Quezon City, 1975
- Numismatic Notes And Monographs No. 8, The Mint of the Philippine Islands by Gilbert S. Perez, The American Numismatic Association, New York, NY, 1921
- United States Territorial Coinage for the Philippine Islands by Neil Shafer, Whitman Publishing Company Racine, Wisconsin, 1961
- 'Wilson Dollar' medal obverse die surfaces - Coin World, January 31, 2012
- Annual Report of the Treasurer of the Philippine Islands to the Secretary of Finance, Manila Bureau of Printing, for each of the calendar years 1920-1938
- Medals of the United States Assay Commission 1860-1977, by R.W. Julian and Ernest E. Keusch, TAMS Journal 29: 5(2), October 1989
Rev. 11/15/2017
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View Coin
| HK-449 |
United States
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SC$1 1920 HK-449 WILSON DOLLAR MANILA MINT OPENING ALLEN-M1
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NGC MS 62
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Philippines - 1920 HK-449 Silver SC$1 Wilson Dollar / Manila Mint Opening - Allen #M1 - Mintage: 2,200
This piece is a bit of a stretch for my Minted in the USA set but is perfect to start off the Mint of the Philippine Islands set. It’s not a coin, nor was it struck at a mint in the USA. It was however struck in a new mint constructed in an insular territory of the United States of America. This so-called “Wilson Dollar” was very likely struck on July 15, 1920, to commemorate the opening day of the Philippine Mint in Manila which would be used almost exclusively to produce US/Philippine coinage.
The obverse is dominated by the portrait of President Woodrow Wilson who is identified only as the “PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES.” It was designed by George T. Morgan and is a slightly abbreviated version of the design found on the second Wilson inauguration medal in the United States Mint Presidential series.
The female figure on the reverse is often assumed to be Liberty, since this is a U.S. Mint medal. Occasionally, she is identified as Justice, probably because of the scales she is holding in her right hand. Neither of these are correct however. The reverse (also designed by Morgan) actually depicts "Juno Moneta" protecting and instructing a novice in the art and science of coin production. Juno Moneta is the Roman Goddess of Good Counsel, whose name means "Adviser" or "Warner", a very appropriate choice for a medal commemorating the opening of a mint.
According the The British Museum, "The origins of the modern English words 'money' and 'mint' lie in ancient Rome. In the period of the Roman Republic, from about 300 BC onwards, coins were made near the temple of the goddess Juno Moneta. It was located on the Capitol (the modern Campidoglio), the citadel of Rome. The goddess's name, Moneta ('Warner' or 'Reminder') eventually came to refer to the place where the coins were made, the 'mint', and to its product, 'money', both of which derive ultimately from the Latin word moneta."
The design of the medal was first credited to Clifford Hewitt by noted numismatist and polymath Gilbert S. Perez who was present at the Philippine Mint on July 15, 1920 for the opening ceremonies. In 1921, he published his first person accounting of the events in Numismatic Notes And Monographs No. 8, The Mint of the Philippine Islands in which he stated Speaker Osmeña of the House of Representatives [...] struck off the first medal (designed by Mr. Clifford Hewitt) which was issued in commemoration of the opening. The medal was certainly struck under the direction of Mr. Hewitt, who was responsible for the assembly and installation of the minting equipment, but the design and engraving credit clearly belongs to George T. Morgan. Morgan's initial even appears on the base of Wilson's bust on the obverse and and to the right of Juno's left foot on the reverse. We will never know exactly why Gilbert Perez credited the design to Clifford Hewett, but since he did, that credit has been propagated by many other authoritative sources. Mr. Perez also described the reverse design as the figure of Liberty protecting and instructing beginners in the art of coining, holding in her right hand a pair of scales to demonstrate the absolute necessity for care and exactness in operation which all mint work demands. He got that wrong too, so his errant credit of the design to Mr. Hewitt may not be that surprising. Fact checking in the 1920s was not as rigorous as it is today.
3,700 of these medals were stuck in bronze, 2,200 in silver, and a small quantity in gold. The number stuck in gold is most commonly quoted as 5, although six are known to have been certified by the grading services and many very knowledgeable dealers maintain that even more uncertified examples exist. The 1934 treasurers report states that at the end of 1934, 1,053 of the silver and 2,117 of bronze medals remained unsold. Mint records from 1935-1938 do not provide the same level of detail as in 1934, but it is possible to speculate on how many of each remained unsold in 1938. Demand for these mint opening medals rose shaprly when the Commonwealth of the Philippines was born in 1935 and the three commemorative coins were issued in 1936. At the end of 1938, less than 700 silver medals and less than 1800 bronze medals remained in the treasure. This represents about 30% of the silver 48% of the bronze medals so it is very likely that 1,500 to 1,600 silver medals and 1,800 to 2,000 bronze medals may have escaped being dumped into the Pacific Ocean in 1941 to keep them from falling into enemy hands when Japan invaded the Islands. These pieces were salvaged after the war but were corroded by the exposure to sea water, and are often sold as “sea salvaged.” Many of those that escaped the ravages of the salt water have been cleaned, so pristine, unadulterated examples are relatively rare, particularly in Bronze.
This Medal
This particular medal is one of the 2,200 minted in silver and originally sold for $1.00 in 1920. I purchased this specimen raw and submitted it to NGC myself for certification and grading. I was very pleased with the result.
Date acquired: 4/12/2005 (raw medal)
Date graded: 6/23/2009 (self submitted to NGC)
References
- Coins, Medals and Tokens of the Philippines 1728-1974 by Aldo P. Basso, second edition Bookman Printing House, Quezon City, 1975
- Numismatic Notes And Monographs No. 8, The Mint of the Philippine Islands by Gilbert S. Perez, The American Numismatic Association, New York, NY, 1921
- United States Territorial Coinage for the Philippine Islands by Neil Shafer, Whitman Publishing Company Racine, Wisconsin, 1961
Rev. 11/6/2017
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View Coin
| HK-450 |
United States
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SC$1 1920 HK-450 WILSON DOLLAR MANILA MINT OPENING ALLEN-M2 MANILA MINT OPENING
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NGC AU Details
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Philippines - 1920 HK-450 Bronze SC$1 Wilson Dollar / Manila Mint Opening - Allen #M2 (HK-450) - Mintage: 3,700
This piece is a bit of a stretch for my Minted in the USA set but is perfect to start off the Mint of the Philippine Islands set. It’s not a coin, nor was it struck at a mint in the USA. It was however struck in a new mint constructed in an insular territory of the United States of America. This so-called “Wilson Dollar” was very likely struck on July 15, 1920, to commemorate the opening day of the Philippine Mint in Manila which would be used almost exclusively to produce US/Philippine coinage.
The obverse is dominated by the portrait of President Woodrow Wilson who is identified only as the “PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES.” It was designed by George T. Morgan and is a slightly abbreviated version of the design found on the second Wilson inauguration medal in the United States Mint Presidential series.
The female figure on the reverse is often assumed to be Liberty, since this is a U.S. Mint medal. Occasionally, she is identified as Justice, probably because of the scales she is holding in her right hand. Neither of these are correct however. The reverse (also designed by Morgan) actually depicts "Juno Moneta" protecting and instructing a novice in the art and science of coin production. Juno Moneta is the Roman Goddess of Good Counsel, whose name means "Adviser" or "Warner", a very appropriate choice for a medal commemorating the opening of a mint.
According the The British Museum, "The origins of the modern English words 'money' and 'mint' lie in ancient Rome. In the period of the Roman Republic, from about 300 BC onwards, coins were made near the temple of the goddess Juno Moneta. It was located on the Capitol (the modern Campidoglio), the citadel of Rome. The goddess's name, Moneta ('Warner' or 'Reminder') eventually came to refer to the place where the coins were made, the 'mint', and to its product, 'money', both of which derive ultimately from the Latin word moneta."
The design of the medal was first credited to Clifford Hewitt by noted numismatist and polymath Gilbert S. Perez who was present at the Philippine Mint on July 15, 1920 for the opening ceremonies. In 1921, he published his first person accounting of the events in Numismatic Notes And Monographs No. 8, The Mint of the Philippine Islands in which he stated Speaker Osmeña of the House of Representatives [...] struck off the first medal (designed by Mr. Clifford Hewitt) which was issued in commemoration of the opening. The medal was certainly struck under the direction of Mr. Hewitt, who was responsible for the assembly and installation of the minting equipment, but the design and engraving credit clearly belongs to George T. Morgan. Morgan's initial even appears on the base of Wilson's bust on the obverse and and to the right of Juno's left foot on the reverse. We will never know exactly why Gilbert Perez credited the design to Clifford Hewett, but since he did, that credit has been propagated by many other authoritative sources. Mr. Perez also described the reverse design as the figure of Liberty protecting and instructing beginners in the art of coining, holding in her right hand a pair of scales to demonstrate the absolute necessity for care and exactness in operation which all mint work demands. He got that wrong too, so his errant credit of the design to Mr. Hewitt may not be that surprising. Fact checking in the 1920s was not as rigorous as it is today.
3,700 of these medals were stuck in bronze, 2,200 in silver, and a small quantity in gold. The number stuck in gold is most commonly quoted as 5, although six are known to have been certified by the grading services and many very knowledgeable dealers maintain that even more uncertified examples exist. The 1934 treasurers report states that at the end of 1934, 1,053 of the silver and 2,117 of bronze medals remained unsold. Mint records from 1935-1938 do not provide the same level of detail as in 1934, but it is possible to speculate on how many of each remained unsold in 1938. Demand for these mint opening medals rose shaprly when the Commonwealth of the Philippines was born in 1935 and the three commemorative coins were issued in 1936. At the end of 1938, less than 700 silver medals and less than 1800 bronze medals remained in the treasure. This represents about 30% of the silver 48% of the bronze medals so it is very likely that 1,500 to 1,600 silver medals and 1,800 to 2,000 bronze medals may have escaped being dumped into the Pacific Ocean in 1941 to keep them from falling into enemy hands when Japan invaded the Islands. These pieces were salvaged after the war but were corroded by the exposure to sea water, and are often sold as “sea salvaged.” Many of those that escaped the ravages of the salt water have been cleaned, so pristine, unadulterated examples are relatively rare, particularly in Bronze.
This Medal
This particular medal is one of the 3,700 minted in Bronze and originally sold for $0.50 in 1920. I purchased this specimen raw and submitted it to NGC for certification and grading. I was a bit disappointed with the Details grade, but not too terribly surprised. It is not a sea salvaged piece, and despite the improper cleaning, the medal exhibits great color and eye appeal. In spite of the larger mintage, original bronze specimens are much more difficult to obtain than their silver counterpart. My search will continue.
Date acquired: 11/11/2011 (raw medal)
Date graded: 1/10/2012 (self submitted to NGC)
References
- Coins, Medals and Tokens of the Philippines 1728-1974 by Aldo P. Basso, second edition Bookman Printing House, Quezon City, 1975
- Numismatic Notes And Monographs No. 8, The Mint of the Philippine Islands by Gilbert S. Perez, The American Numismatic Association, New York, NY, 1921
- United States Territorial Coinage for the Philippine Islands by Neil Shafer, Whitman Publishing Company Racine, Wisconsin, 1961
Rev. 7/8/2023
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View Coin
| Allen-2.18 |
United States
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1C 1920 S USA-PHIL ALLEN-2.18
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NGC MS 64 BN
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Lyman Allen #2.18 (KM #163) - Mintage: 2,500,000
This is the last of the One Centavo coins to be minted in San Francisco with the Territorial Reverse. Since the production of One Centavo coins also began in Manila in 1920, the quantity minted in San Francisco was significantly less than in preceding years. With only 2.5 million minted, these coins are quite difficult to obtain in mint state. So difficult in fact that, as of this revision date, no Red or Red Brown examples are listed in the NGC population report.
The reverse of this coin exhibits the streaking typical of many copper coins struck at the San Francisco mint between 1908 and 1924. While predominantly brown, it still displays hints of pale, brassy coloring and the so-called "woodgrain" streaks running diagonally across the reverse. This color and streaking can be attributed to either impurities in the alloy or concentrations of copper that did not mix completely with the tin and zinc. When the ingots were rolled into strips for blanking, these impurities or concentrations became elongated and appeared as streaks in the coins when they began to tone.
This brown coin is an exceptional example of this difficult issue. and It has great eye appeal. There are only four finer graded by NGC in MS65BN.
Varieties: None cataloged for this year.
Date acquired: 12/19/2011 (raw coin)
Date graded: 9/26/2012 (self submitted to NGC, encapsulated in the NGC Scratch Resistant Holder)
References:
- "San Francisco Mint Cents 1908-24" posted by David Lange, NGC Research Director on July 1, 2003 (http://www.ngccoin.com/news/viewarticle.aspx?IDArticle=726)
Rev. 12/10/2015
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View Coin
| Allen-2.19 |
United States
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1C 1920 USA-PHIL ALLEN-2.19
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NGC MS 64 RB
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Lyman Allen #2.19 (KM #163) - Mintage: 3,552,259
Although the legislation signed by President Theodore Roosevelt on July 1, 1902 provided that "coins should be struck in Manila if practicable," it would be another 18 years before it actually happened. The minting of all Philippine coinage in San Francisco and subsequent shipment across the Pacific Ocean was awkward at best, so, on February 8, 1918, the Philippine legislature appropriated 100,000 pesos for the construction of the Manila Mint.
The Manila Mint, however, was not a new building. Instead, it occupied the first floor of the old Intendencia Building which it shared with the Philippine Treasury, Senate, and other government offices. Clifford Hewitt, the chief engineer of the U.S. Mint, designed and supervised the construction of the machinery. Hewett wanted to incorporate the latest minting technology and had the machinery assembled and tested at the Philadelphia Mint in June 1919. It was then shipped through the Panama Canal and arrived in Manila in November 1919. Over the next 7 months, Hewett supervised the installation of the equipment and the preparation of the mint for opening in 1920.
The first official coinage at the Manila Mint took place in ceremonies on the morning of Thursday, July 15, 1920. Under the direction of Clifford Hewett, Governor-General Francis Burton Harrison coined the first bronze centavo.
Although there is no mint mark, this is one of the first coins minted at the new US Mint in Manila.
This particular coin exhibits a weak strike which is typical of the early Manila Mint issues. There is a substantial amount of red for an RB grade.
Varieties: None cataloged for this year.
Date acquired: 8/6/2008 (already graded by NGC)
References:
- DeLorey, T. "THE U.S. MINT Of The Philippines," COINage, January 1997, pp. 72-78.
- Perez, G.S. "The Mint in the Philippine Islands," Numismatic Notes and Monographs (1921), Number 8.
- von Klinger, E. "America's overseas Mint" - Coin World, November 29.2004, pp 120.
Rev. 12/10/2015
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View Coin
| Allen-4.10 |
United States
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5C 1920 USA-PHIL ALLEN-4.10
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PCGS MS 63
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Lyman Allen #4.10 (KM #164) - Mintage: 1,421,078
Although the legislation signed by President Theodore Roosevelt on July 1, 1902 provided that "coins should be struck in Manila if practicable," it would be another 18 years before it actually happened. The minting of all Philippine coinage in San Francisco and subsequent shipment across the Pacific Ocean was awkward at best, so, on February 8, 1918, the Philippine legislature appropriated 100,000 pesos for the construction of the Manila Mint.
The Manila Mint, however, was not a new building. Instead, it occupied the first floor of the old Intendencia Building which it shared with the Philippine Treasury, Senate, and other government offices. Clifford Hewitt, the chief engineer of the U.S. Mint, designed and supervised the construction of the machinery. Hewett wanted to incorporate the latest minting technology and had the machinery assembled and tested at the Philadelphia Mint in June 1919. It was then shipped through the Panama Canal and arrived in Manila in November 1919. Over the next 7 months, Hewett supervised the installation of the equipment and the preparation of the mint for opening in 1920.
The first official coinage at the Manila Mint took place in ceremonies on the morning of Thursday, July 15, 1920. Under the direction of Clifford Hewett, Governor-General Francis Burton Harrison coined the first bronze centavo.
Although there is no mint mark, this is one of the first coins minted at the new US Mint in Manila.
This is a nice, well struck Manila mint coin with minimal marks in the fields.
Varieties: None cataloged for this year.
Date acquired: 7/7/2013 (Already graded by PCGS)
References:
- DeLorey, T. "THE U.S. MINT Of The Philippines," COINage, January 1997, pp. 72-78.
- Perez, G.S. "The Mint in the Philippine Islands," Numismatic Notes and Monographs (1921), Number 8.
- von Klinger, E. "America's overseas Mint" - Coin World, November 29.2004, pp 120.
Rev. 11/22/2015
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View Coin
| Allen-8.15 |
United States
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10C 1920 USA-PHIL ALLEN-8.15
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NGC MS 64
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Lyman Allen #8.15 (KM #169) - Mintage: 520,000
General
Although the legislation signed by President Theodore Roosevelt on July 1, 1902 provided that "coins should be struck in Manila if practicable," it would be another 18 years before it actually happened. In 1917, a high demand for coinage due to World War I, and rising silver prices caused a severe shortage of circulating coins. Economic commerce was impacted and the Philippine legislature decided it was time for a mint on Philippine soil. Act No. 2738, signed into law by Governor-General Francis Burton Harrison on February 16, 1918 appropriated the initial 100,000 pesos to begin construction of the Mint in Manila.
The "new" Philippine Mint was not to be housed in a new building. Instead, it occupied the first floor of the old Intendencia Building which it shared with the Philippine Treasury, Senate, and other government offices. Clifford Hewitt, the chief engineer of the U.S. Mint, designed and supervised the construction of the machinery. Hewett wanted to incorporate the latest minting technology and had the machinery assembled and tested at the Philadelphia Mint in June 1919. It was then shipped through the Panama Canal and arrived in Manila in November 1919. Over the next 7 months, Hewett supervised the installation of the equipment and the preparation of the mint for opening in 1920.
The first official coinage at the Philippine Mint took place in ceremonies on the morning of Thursday, July 15, 1920. Under the direction of Clifford Hewett, Governor-General Francis Burton Harrison coined the first bronze centavo.
It is ironic that the very month the new Philippine mint opened in 1920, the economic boom fueled by World War I had ended, the Philippines was in the midst of a serious financial crisis, and the price of silver had fallen below the par value of the coinage. The immediate need for the mint would pass very quickly.
This Coin
Although there is no mint mark, this is one of the first silver coins minted at the new Philippine Mint in Manila. As of this revision, this particular coin is one of only 6 to be graded MS64 by NGC with none finer.
Varieties
None reported for this date.
Date acquired: 6/19/2014 (raw coin)
Date graded: 9/12/2014 (self submitted to NGC)
Date regraded: 12/28/2014 (resubmitted to NGC)
References
- DeLorey, T. "THE U.S. MINT Of The Philippines," COINage, January 1997, pp. 72-78.
- Perez, G.S. "The Mint in the Philippine Islands," Numismatic Notes and Monographs (1921), Number 8.
- von Klinger, E. "America's overseas Mint" - Coin World, November 29.2004, pp 120.
Rev. 11/4/2019
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View Coin
| Allen-11.16 |
United States
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20C 1920 USA-PHIL ALLEN-11.16
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NGC MS 63
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Lyman Allen #11.16 (KM #170) - Mintage: 1,045,415
Although the legislation signed by President Theodore Roosevelt on July 1, 1902 provided that "coins should be struck in Manila if practicable," it would be another 18 years before it actually happened. The minting of all Philippine coinage in San Francisco and subsequent shipment across the Pacific Ocean was awkward at best, so, on February 8, 1918, the Philippine legislature appropriated 100,000 pesos for the construction of the Manila Mint.
The Manila Mint, however, was not a new building. Instead, it occupied the first floor of the old Intendencia Building which it shared with the Philippine Treasury, Senate, and other government offices. Clifford Hewitt, the chief engineer of the U.S. Mint, designed and supervised the construction of the machinery. Hewett wanted to incorporate the latest minting technology and had the machinery assembled and tested at the Philadelphia Mint in June 1919. It was then shipped through the Panama Canal and arrived in Manila in November 1919. Over the next 7 months, Hewett supervised the installation of the equipment and the preparation of the mint for opening in 1920.
The first official coinage at the Manila Mint took place in ceremonies on the morning of Thursday, July 15, 1920. Under the direction of Clifford Hewett, Governor-General Francis Burton Harrison coined the first bronze centavo.
Although there is no mint mark, this is among the first coins minted at the new US Mint in Manila.
Varieties: None cataloged for this year.
Date acquired: 2/15/2021 (Already graded by NGC)
References:
- DeLorey, T. "THE U.S. MINT Of The Philippines," COINage, January 1997, pp. 72-78.
- Perez, G.S. "The Mint in the Philippine Islands," Numismatic Notes and Monographs (1921), Number 8.
- von Klinger, E. "America's overseas Mint" - Coin World, November 29.2004, pp 120.
Rev. 2/25/2021
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View Coin
| Allen-14.09 |
United States
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50C 1920 USA-PHIL ALLEN-14.09
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PCGS MS 64
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Lyman Allen #14.09 (KM #171) - Mintage: 420,000
Although this coin bears no mint mark, it was one of the first 50 Centavo coins struck by the new US Mint in Manila after opening in 1920. No mint mark was used for the first two years of operation and since 50 Centavo coins of this type were only struck in 1920 and 1921, no 50 Centavo coin other than the 1936 commemorative ever bore the "M" mint mark.
The strike is typically weak overall, and is particularly week in the hair detail and the date. The 2 and 0 of the date are rarely found fully struck on these coins and demand a premium when they are. It is however very well preserved and none have received a higher numeric grade from either PCGS or NGC.
Date acquired: 6/2/2013 (already graded by PCGS)
Rev. 11/26/2015
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View Coin
| Allen-C7 |
United States
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10C 1920 USA-PHIL CULION LEPER COLONY KM-9, ALLEN-C-7
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NGC XF 40
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KM-9 - Culion Leper Colony 1920 10 Centavos - Mintage:20,000
Struck in Aluminum with a diameter of 28.8mm.
Allen #: C-7
McFadden #: 759
Basso #: 231
Shafer #: SL-7
This coin is part of the second series of coins issued for use in the Culion Leper Colony and among the first to be minted at the then new U.S. branch mint in Manila. Like all of the regular issue coins issued by the Manila mint in 1920, they carry no mint mark. The design is essentially the same as that of the first series issued in 1913 by the private firm of Frank & Company in Manila. The obverse is composed of the denomination surrounded by the text "CULION LEPER COLONY" above and "PHILIPPINE ISLANDS" below. The reverse consists of a rather crude rendering of a Caduceus as the central element surrounded by the words "BUREAU OF HEALTH," two separating stars and the date. All of the reference sources (except McFadden) designate the obverse and reverse this way, but NGC places the reverse facing the front of the holder. I personally prefer the NGC designation, but will go with the majority of reference books for consistency. Like the first series, these coins were also minted in Aluminum, but were ever so slightly reduced in diameter from 29 to 28.8mm.
This coin is mislabeled on the NGC holder as KM-8 (which is the 1913 10 Centavo coin). I suspect, but can not prove that the KM numbers in use at the time this coin was graded were different than those in use today, so at the time it was graded, the number was probably correct.
All of the coinage for the Culion Leper Colony was well circulated and mint state specimens are extremely rare. So rare, in fact that the Krause only lists prices for grades up through XF40. As of this revision, this is the only 1920 10 Centavo coin to have been graded and encapsulated by NGC.
Varieties: None reported for this date and denomination.
Date acquired: 9/23/2012 (Already graded by NGC)
References:
• "United States Territorial Coinage for the Philippine Islands" by Neil Shafer, Whitman Publishing Company Racine, Wisconsin, 1961: 41-45
• "Coins, Medals and Tokens of the Philippines 1728-1974" by Aldo P. Basso, second edition Bookman Printing House, Quezon City, 1975: 76-80
• "The Numismatic Aspects of Leprosy" by R.R. McFadden, J. Grost, and D.F. Marr, D.C. McDonald Associates, Inc., 1993: 58-69
• "Standard Catalog of World Coins" by Krause & Mischler (Identifies coins by their "KM" numbers 1-18 and A5.)
Rev. 12/24/2015
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| Allen-C8 |
United States
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20C 1920 USA-PHIL CULION LEPER COLONY KM-12, ALLEN-C-8
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NGC VG 8
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KM-12 - Culion Leper Colony 1920 20 Centavos - Mintage:10,000
Struck in Aluminum with a diameter of 32.3mm.
Allen #: C-8
McFadden #: 760
Basso #: 232
Shafer #: SL-8
This coin is part of the second series of coins issued for use in the Culion Leper Colony and among the first to be minted at the then new U.S. branch mint in Manila. Like all of the regular issue coins issued by the Manila mint in 1920, they carry no mint mark. The design is essentially the same as that of the first series issued in 1913 by the private firm of Frank & Company in Manila. The obverse is composed of the denomination surrounded by the text "CULION LEPER COLONY" above and "PHILIPPINE ISLANDS" below. The reverse consists of a rather crude rendering of a Caduceus as the central element surrounded by the words "BUREAU OF HEALTH," two separating stars and the date. All of the reference sources (except McFadden) designate the obverse and reverse this way, but NGC places the reverse facing the front of the holder. I personally prefer the NGC designation, but will go with the majority of reference books for consistency. Like the first series, these coins were also minted in Aluminum, but were ever so slightly increased in diameter from 32 to 32.3mm.
This particular coin is well worn, but unlike most of the Culion Leper Colony coins, it has not been cleaned. An original, uncleaned piece is nice to have regardless of grade.
Varieties: None reported for this date and denomination.
Date acquired: 7/16/2013 (raw coin)
Date graded: 1/27/2014 (self submitted to NGC)
References:
• "United States Territorial Coinage for the Philippine Islands" by Neil Shafer, Whitman Publishing Company Racine, Wisconsin, 1961: 41-45
• "Coins, Medals and Tokens of the Philippines 1728-1974" by Aldo P. Basso, second edition Bookman Printing House, Quezon City, 1975: 76-80
• "The Numismatic Aspects of Leprosy" by R.R. McFadden, J. Grost, and D.F. Marr, D.C. McDonald Associates, Inc., 1993: 58-69
• "Standard Catalog of World Coins" by Krause & Mischler (Identifies coins by their "KM" numbers 1-18 and A5.)
Rev. 12/24/2015
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| Allen-C9 |
United States
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PESO 1920 USA-PHIL CULION LEPER COLONY KM-15, ALLEN-C-9
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NGC XF 45
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KM-15 - Culion Leper Colony 1920 One Peso - Mintage:4,000
Struck in Aluminum with a diameter of 35.4mm.
Allen #: C-9
McFadden #: 761 (Type I)
Basso #: 233
Shafer #: SL-9
This coin is part of the second series of coins issued for use in the Culion Leper Colony and among the first to be minted at the then new U.S. branch mint in Manila. Like all of the regular issue coins issued by the Manila mint in 1920, they carry no mint mark. The design is essentially the same as that of the first series issued in 1913 by the private firm of Frank & Company in Manila. The obverse is composed of the denomination surrounded by the text "CULION LEPER COLONY" above and "PHILIPPINE ISLANDS" below. The reverse consists of a rather crude rendering of a Caduceus as the central element surrounded by the words "BUREAU OF HEALTH," two separating stars and the date. All of the reference sources (except McFadden) designate the obverse and reverse this way, but NGC places the reverse facing the front of the holder. I personally prefer the NGC designation, but will go with the majority of reference books for consistency. Like the first series, these coins were also minted in Aluminum, with the same diameter.
This particular coin is a nice, unadulterated example of this desirable date. It is the second finest to have been graded by NGC with only one finer at AU50.
There are three varieties of this issue:
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• Type I - Pointed serif on 1, (narrow numerals) "P" in PESO over third "P" in PHILIPPINES. Far to stars. (McFadden #: 761)
• Type I(a) - Blunt serif on 1, (rounder numerals) "P" in PESO over third "P" in PHILIPPINES. Far to stars. (not identified by McFadden, but listed by Krause as a variation of KM-15)
• Type II - Pointed serif on 1, (narrow numerals) "P" in PESO over third "I" in PHILIPPINES. Near to stars. (McFadden #: 762)
Date acquired: 5/6/2022 (raw coin)
Date graded: 8/19/2022 (self submitted to NGC)
References:
• "United States Territorial Coinage for the Philippine Islands" by Neil Shafer, Whitman Publishing Company Racine, Wisconsin, 1961: 41-45
• "Coins, Medals and Tokens of the Philippines 1728-1974" by Aldo P. Basso, second edition Bookman Printing House, Quezon City, 1975: 76-80
• "The Numismatic Aspects of Leprosy" by R.R. McFadden, J. Grost, and D.F. Marr, D.C. McDonald Associates, Inc., 1993: 58-69
• "Standard Catalog of World Coins" by Krause & Mischler (Identifies coins by their "KM" numbers 1-18 and A5.)
Rev. 10/21/2022
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