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Proof Set Featuring Silver 2012 America the Beautiful Quarters Released
January 10, 2012 by Rhonda Kay · 1 Comment
The United States Mint launched the 2012 America the Beautiful Quarters Silver Proof Set on Tuesday, January 10, 2012 at 12 noon ET. The set represents the third year in the series honoring America’s national parks and sites.
The United States Mint included the above image of the America the Beautiful Quarters Silver Proof Set in a customer email to announce its availability
With a price tag of $41.95, which is the same as the 2011 set, the U.S. Mint is offering the product at a $14.90 premium based on the current spot silver price of $29.92 per ounce. The five quarters are composed of 90% of the precious metal, totaling 0.904 ounces. The other 10% is from copper.
The third annual America the Beautiful Quarters Silver Proof Set includes a:
- 2012-S El Yunque National Forest Quarter for Puerto Rico,
- 2012-S Chaco Culture National Historical Park Quarter for New Mexico,
- 2012-S Acadia National Park Quarter for Maine,
- 2012-S Hawaii Volcanoes National Park Quarter for Hawaii, and
- 2012-S Denali National Park and Preserve Quarter for Alaska.
Each quarter bears the "S" mint mark of the San Francisco mint facility, and each is in pristine proof condition. They are sealed within special protective packaging that includes the U.S. Mint’s Certificate of Authenticity.
These same quarter dollars will also be part of the annual 2012 Silver Proof Set, which will launch later this year. This set also has proof versions of this year’s four Presidential dollars, the Native American dollar, the Kennedy half dollar, the Roosevelt dime, the Jefferson nickel and the Lincoln cent. Only the half dollar and the dime will be composed of 90 percent silver like the five quarters, while the other coins will have a clad composition. At the time of this writing, its release date has not been published.
Orders for the America the Beautiful Quarters Silver Proof Set may be placed at the U.S. Mint’s store at http://www.usmint.gov/catalog or by calling the toll-free number, 1-800-USA-MINT (872-6468). Hearing and speech-impaired customers with TTY equipment may place their order by calling 1-888-321-MINT (6468). An additional shipping and handling fee of $4.95 will be applied to all domestic orders. The set has no household limits and no mintage limits. Also, it is one of several America the Beautiful Quarters products offered within the Mint’s subscription programs, described at http://www.usmint.gov/catalog.
The annual quarters’ set is a popular item for the U.S. Mint. The latest sales figures for the 2011 America the Beautiful Quarters Silver Proof Set, which was released on April 1, 2011, and is still available from the Mint, had sales of 135,195 as of Monday, January 9.
The 2012 ATB Silver Quarter set arrived and it is very substandard. The mirrored fields are pock-marked with RAISED bumps that appear to be remnants of the design in some other area. This makes the supposed mirrored finish dull, unattractive, and difficult to digest. I bought from the mint as well as another EBAY seller- no difference. Moreover, the frosted fields bleed onto the mirrored finish, making the coins look second rate, like some novice country’s coins. Like maybe Iraq. The designs are so pretty though, and with a premium of 20 or so dollars, that makes the effective price four dollars per coin. Worth it to fill holes only. If I thought I could get some Pf 70 out of my seven sets, I would send the best five in. That ain’t gonna happen, as I cannot five which I feel would grade at even 68. Sad sad sad.