Maya Angelou Quarters is a commemorative coins program by the United States Mint released in 2020. The series will feature coins with designs inspired by American Poet and storyteller, Maya Angelou. It is the first coin series released in the U.S. to honor an individual female poet. Each coin contains 8.33 grams of copper and nickel and is a quarter denomination coin.
There are four different designs and each one appears on the obverse side (front side) of the coin. The four coins feature a portrait of Maya Angelou, a quote from her poem, “Still I Rise”, a portrait of her childhood home, and an image of her speaking and writing. On the reverse side (back side) is John Flanagan’s 1932 design of George Washington with a quote from one of his poems.
The portraits on coins are designed by Artistic Infusion Program artists, Emily Damstra and Donna Weaver and the coins are engineered and produced by The United States Mint. Each coin is composed from a blend of copper and nickel, struck in satin finish and will have a diameter of 24.3 millimeters. The 2020-dated coin was released on June 8th, 2020, and was issued through key cities in the United States: San Antonio, Atlanta, Los Angeles, and Washington, D.C.
At the time of launch, only 275,000 coins were produced. This is much lower than the 7.6 million coins minted in 2018 for the World War One centennial. All the coins were serious challenge coins because they had potential to sell out fast and would be known as hard to find coins. As a result, the coins are more valuable than those with larger mintages since they are rarer in nature.
The coins were released as a collector item which sold out quickly. Those who were lucky enough to purchase the coins sent them off to grading companies like PCGS, NGC, ANACS and ICG. Thecoins with the highest grade are assigned even higher values than the normal issues. It might be hard to find coins graded higher than MS70 or Come across coins in perfect condition. Also the 2020 Maya Angelou quarters are the completion of a series of coins started a few years ago.
Since the Maya Angelou quarter is a limited edition release from the United States Mint, it can be an excellent coin to invest in. The present market price of the coin is around $14-$20 but it is expected to grow in the future. The value of the coin may fluctuate based on limited supplies and its popularity with coin collecting enthusiasts. The market for the coin is still relatively young, and it is certain to appreciate in value over the years.
Describing the Maya Angelou Quarters
The Maya Angelou Quarters are a series of coins released to commemorate the life and works of the iconic American poet and storyteller, Maya Angelou. The obverse side (front side) of each coin in the series feature a portrait of Maya Angelou, a quote from one of her poems, a portrait of her childhood home, and an image of her speaking and writing. On the reverse side (back side) of the coins is John Flanagan’s 1932 of George Washington with a quote from one of his poems. These coins were created by the United States Mint and are composed of a blend of copper and nickel and are a quarter denomination coin.
The designs created on each coin to honor Maya Angelou were created by Artistic Infusion Program artists Emily Damstra and Donna Weaver. The dies used to produce the coins were created and engineered specifically to replicate the faces, symbols and quotations that define the enigmatic life of Dr. Angelou. The obverse sides of the coins have particularly intricate designs and features for a 10-cent coin. The coins are not only rich in artistic value but also have huge sentimental and emotional depth.
The coins in the Maya Angelou Quarters were sold as collector items and were released on June 8th, 2020. Only 275,000 coins were released, making this series one of the hard-to-find coins of the year. The Maya Angelou Quarter is highly popular amongst both collectors and regular buyers and its value is expected to continue to appreciate in the future. The coins also have a huge investor potential and they can also be used to create interesting design pieces making them a great jewelry item as well.
The Intricate Minting Process
The intrinsic value of the Maya Angelou Quarters relies on their minting process and their intricately designed features. The coins in the series are created using a unique and sophisticated minting procedure that only the United States Mint is able to achieve. The Mint’s experienced coin engineers have used the latest technologies to create an exact replica of the coins, complete with the artist’s illustrations and quotes from Maya Angelou’s poems. The quarters are created using a specific composition of copper alloy containing nickel along with a hot-twin process.
This combination of advanced minting technologies and complex engineering provides the coins with their intricate designs and symbols. The fine, detailed lines, along with the different shades of gray, yellow and black, create an effect that adds to the overall allure spawned by them. The result is a quarter with a genuine likeness to Maya Angelou. The coins bear her features and expressions intricately, thus honoring her memory in a unique, indelible way.
The Maya Angelou Quarters have the potential to be quite valuable to the collector. This comes from the sophisticated minting process along with the limited edition release and the short print run of only 275,000 coins. Due to the limited number of coins available and the sophisticated minting which has gone into creating them, each coin holds a special value that adds to the overall investment potential.
Grading Process
For those fortunate enough to acquire the Maya Angelou Quarters, the importance of professional grading and authentication is essential when it comes to potential investment opportunities and the preservation of their future value. Coins are sent to independent companies to get them graded, such as PCGS, NGC, ANACS and ICG.
These companies guarantee the grade of a coins and encapsulate them in a holder to protect them and increase their collector value. The value of a coin for a collector can dramatically increase once it is placed in a coins holder as coins are valued on the premise that they are in the best condition possible. The 2020 Maya Angelou series is suggested to average grades of MS64 or MS 65, though coins with higher grades can range from MS70 or better.
Consequently, coin collectors are much more likely to purchase coins that have been graded and authenticated by an independent agency as each grade brings with it its own authenticity and worth. Investors also prefer to buy coins that have been graded and encapsulated as they help maintain the coins’ true value and protect against counterfeits.
Unique Quality of the Maya Angelou Quarter
What makes the Maya Angelou quarter series so special is that they are the first coins ever to honor an individual female poet. Other coins in the past may have honored individuals, usually presidents and leaders, but never before has a poet and storyteller been commemorated in such a unique way as Maya Angelou has with these coins.
The coins are also unique because of their artwork and design. They are sleek but intricate and accurately capture her physical features and expressions. The words from her iconic poem “Still I Rise” also appear along with a portrait of her childhood home. Moreover, each coin features the iconic 1932 portrait of George Washington on the reverse side, making a fitting tribute to Maya Angelou, who herself was an icon of literature and expression.
The coins also have an intrinsic value that appeals to investors. At present market prices, the coin behaves similarly to precious metals. This means that they do appreciate in value over time and can be used to diversify portfolios beyond stocks and bonds. For this reason, investors looking for alternatives may find that the Maya Angelou Quarters are an attractive proposition.
The value propagated by the coins is both physical and emotional. One cannot look at the coins without feeling a strong connection to Maya Angelou. She stands behind them, forever immortalized in the iron and then copper alloy used to make them. The coins are special like she is, and they will be treasured by generations to come.
