The E-Sylum:  Volume 8, Number 3, January 16, 2005, Article 10

U.S. MINT PLANS ATTACK ON COLORIZED COINS

Dick Johnson writes: "Mint Director Henrietta Holsman
Fore was interviewed by the Associated Press which
released the story January 11, 2005, that she wants to
crack down on entrepreneurs who alter her agency’s coins
and offer these in elaborate and boastful advertising. The
AP story is fraught with misused phrases -- "unscrupulous
coin dealers," "fake commemorative coins," "scam artists,"
"bilking the public" – are used in just the first three sentences.

The people who are doing this are generally NOT coin
dealers, they are people, however, who are familiar with
American coins. Coin dealers, generally, dislike these
objects as much as those of us in the field who have been
around awhile. (I discount them and have none in my
collections, but if someone else wants them that’s okay
with me.)

They are not fake coins, but genuine coins that have been
treated in some way, to add color, or plated to add a
different metal covering. They are not made by scam artists
(it takes some skill if these are "painted," to use the article’s
word, to add the color). Maybe the advertising is questionable,
perhaps even "deceptive." But compare this to much of
what is prepared for our field by advertising agencies
unfamiliar with numismatics. (Dare I say like some of the
agency-prepared U.S. Mint's own ad copy?) It is still
"buyer beware."

And for "bilking the public" implies the buyers were forced
to make the purchase.

The U.S. Mint faces some tough times ahead to curtail
this practice. I am not a lawyer, but aren’t the coins in your
pocket your property? Can’t you do anything you wish with
them? Paint ‘em, plate ‘em, cut ‘em up, whatever? Doesn’t
the illegality come if you try to spend the coin, to return it to
circulation, to make it legal tender again? If you sell it for
many times its face value, colorized or untreated naked metal,
I don’t believe this is against the law. Gosh, there are a million
transactions like that every week in the numismatic field.

Perhaps Mrs Fore should be less concerned with these coin
sales. She can do one of two things: beat ‘em at their own
game -- have the Mint sell colorized coins -- OR, create so
much desirable coin and numismatic products at the Mint
that we poor collectors don’t have enough money left to
buy the colorized items. To ask Congress to enact legislation
to make this practice illegal is questionable and perhaps a
waste of time.

I would welcome your opinion after you read the article: Full Story

This practice all started with a John Wayne Congressional
Medal made by the U.S. Mint in 1979. If you are interested
I’ll write about this next week. Tell me you want to know
(or if you have a John Wayne medal in your collection).
dick.johnson at snet.net"

[British enameled coins of the late 1900s are what come to
mind when thinking of these modern versions. 100 years
later these are collectible works of art. These were
probably considered the schlock of the Victorian era, and
collectors of the day probably disdained them just as we
do these. See this web page for images: Images

I would like to learn more about how these modern versions
are made. I thought I read somewhere that the colorization
is outsourced to low-paid workers overseas. Is that true?
-Editor]

  Wayne Homren, Editor

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