2013 White Mountain ATB 5 Ounce Silver Bullion Coin Sales Begin

Sales kicked off Monday, May 13, for the 2013 White Mountain National Forest 5 Ounce Silver Bullion Coin, the 16th issued in the U.S. Mint’s America the Beautiful 5 Ounce Silver Bullion Coin series.

These silver coins feature the same designs as the corresponding America the Beautiful Quarter, except they are much larger with a diameter of 3.0 inches and they have five ounces of silver. Also, quarters have reeded edges while the ATB silver coins have edge inscriptions of .999 FINE SILVER 5.0 OUNCE.

Designs for White Mountain Silver Coins

Found on the coin’s reverse is a depiction of Mt. Chocorua, the easternmost peak of the Sandwich Range. The mountains are framed by birch trees. Surrounding these design elements are inscriptions reading WHITE MOUNTAIN, NEW HAMPSHIRE, 2013 and E PLURIBUS UNUM.

Obverses of the silver coins feature the familiar portrait of George Washington with the exact same inscriptions as found on the quarter — UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, LIBERTY, IN GOD WE TRUST, and QUARTER DOLLAR. The bullion coins do not have a mint mark but the collector uncirculated coins, like the one launching on Thursday, will have a "P" mint mark on the obverse to denote its production at the Philadelphia Mint.

Not Sold Directly to Public

As bullion silver coins intended for investors, they are sold for a bit over their current melt value to U.S. Mint Authorized Purchasers (AP’s) who resell to dealers and/or directly to the public.

In contrast, the collector version of the White Mountain 5 Ounce Silver Uncirculated Coin that launches this Thursday has a fixed price of $179.95. And, the U.S. Mint sells all its collector coins directly to the public through their website at www.usmint.gov/catalog.

Starting Sales Brisk

No sales of White Mountain bullion coins were reported by the U.S. Mint on Monday but sales stats went up 8,900 by mid-day Tuesday and then later ended the day at 12,700 coins.

There is a bit of pent-up demand for the silver coins since the Mint’s entire inventory of 2011- and 2012-dated America the Beautiful 5 Ounce Silver Bullion Coins sold out on March 1, 2013.

Rationing of White Mountain Silver Bullion Coins

This release is different than any from last year because the U.S. Mint is allocating how many they sell until demand can be met. The U.S. Mint on Monday morning told its Authorized Purchasers how many they could buy for the week. The AP’s have until Friday to place orders. Unsold coins after 3 PM ET on Friday go back into the kitty for allocation the following Monday. Here are the exact points that the Mint told AP’s on May 8 about the White Mountain silver coin release and the allocation process:

• Each Monday morning, the inventory available for sale that week will be divided into two equal pools.
• The first pool will be allocated equally to all active Authorized Purchasers (AP’s).
• The second pool will be allocated based on each AP’s sales performance of 2011 and 2012 dated America the Beautiful Five Ounce Silver Bullion Coins.
• Each AP will be advised via fax Monday morning (or if a Government Holiday, Tuesday morning) of their allocation, and they will have until 3:00 p.m. Friday to place orders for their allocated coins.
• Any unordered coins after 3:00 p.m. Friday will be put back into the pool for allocation the following Monday.

Mintage amounts have not been published for this issue or for the other four upcoming 2013 America the Beautiful 5 Ounce Silver Bullion Coin. This means the U.S. Mint intends to produce them to meet demand. Those other four bullion silver coins for 2013 will feature designs honoring

• 2013 Perry’s Victory and International Peace Memorial Site in Ohio
• 2013 Great Basin National Park in Nevada
• 2013 Fort McHenry Site in Maryland
• 2013 Mount Rushmore National Memorial Site in South Dakota

The America the Beautiful coin program debuted in 2010. The series honors national parks and other national sites throughout the United States and its territories.