By CoinWeek News Staff ….
It’s been quite the week for new releases from the U.S. Mint.
First, the 2015 Jacqueline Kennedy First Spouse Series One-Half Ounce Proof and Uncirculated gold coins debuted on June 25 and quickly went on back order thanks to higher-than-expected demand (by the Mint, anyway).
Then, on July 1, the 2015 Harry S. Truman Coin & Chronicles Set–including the first-ever Reverse Proof Presidential $1 coin–sold out of its first run within 15 minutes of going on sale. It is now listed as “Unavailable” on the Mint’s website. Unlike the Jacqueline Kennedy First Spouse gold coins, in which case the Mint will have new inventory by September 1, a date for when the Truman Coin & Chronicles Set will be available again has yet to be determined.
And now, as of noon Eastern Standard Time today, July 2, the 2015 America the Beautiful Quarters Three-Coin Set™ – Blue Ridge Parkway (product code NF7) is available for purchase.
It is unlikely, however, that a bread-and-butter collectible like the Blue Ridge Parkway three-coin set will sell out.
The set, priced at $9.95, features two uncirculated finish quarters minted in Denver and Philadelphia and one proof quarter minted in San Francisco. Like other three-coin sets in the program, the coins are packaged in a plastic card with a certificate of authenticity printed on the back.
The quarter’s reverse features the beauty of the Blue Ridge Parkway as it winds through the Appalachian Mountains of North Carolina and enters a tunnel representative of the many mountainside tunnels one drives through when experiencing the Blue Ridge Parkway. The design was created by Memphis-based artist Frank Morris and engraved by Joseph Menna.
The 2015 Blue Ridge Parkway America the Beautiful quarter also happens to be the 28th entry in the 56-coin program and therefore marks the halfway point of the entire series. The Hot Springs National Park (Arkansas) quarter was the first to be released, on April 19, 2010. The last quarter in the series–the Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site (Alabama)–is set for release in 2021.
The fourth ATB quarter for 2015 (and the 29th entry in the series)–the Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge (Delaware)–is set for release on September 30.
Collectors should visit usmint.gov to place their orders for the Blue Ridge Parkway three-coin set, or call the Mint toll free at 1-800-USA-MINT (872-6468). Hearing- and speech-impaired customers with Teletype equipment may call 1-888-321-MINT to order.
The Blue Ridge Parkway three-coin set is also eligible for purchase through the United States Mint’s Online Product Enrollment Program; please see http://catalog.usmint.gov/enrollment.html for more information.
