Native American Collection

Owner Comments:

The Natchez people lived in the Lower Mississippi Valley near what is today a town that bears their name. They are particularly notable because the language that they spoke lacks any known close relatives. While they initially survived colonization, diseases and military defeats to the French decimated the tribe in the 18th century. Today, the state of South Carolina recognizes two Natchez communities, but most descendants in the United States live as part of other nations in Oklahoma. This coin’s obverse features a Natchez tribesman, who, unlike most other figures in the series, is adorned by jewelry rather than feathers.

On the reverse is the Louisiana black bear. Known by the scientific name “Ursus americanus luteolus,” the subspecies is home to Louisiana and parts of Mississippi and Texas. It is listed on the federal Threatened List, indicating that it is short of endangered but not safe from extinction. The bear lives in forests and bayous and has a long, flat skull and large molars.