Celebrating 100 Years of the United States Mint Collection at the Smithsonian

On March 15, 2023, the Friends of National Numismatic Collection (NNC) gathered with the leadership of the U.S. Mint at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History to celebrate the 100^th anniversary of the U.S. Mint Coin Cabinet at the Smithsonian. Attendees enjoyed remarks from U.S. Mint Director Ventris Gibson, Anthea M. Hartig, the Museum’s Elizabeth MacMillan Director, and Museum Board Member Jeff Garrett. Attendees also had the opportunity to view a special display of objects from the U.S. Mint Coin Cabinet including the Mint Cabinet Accounts, which recorded the Cabinet’s purchases starting in 1856.

The event was well attended and the NNC had two showcases featuring fascinating rarities from the collection. Photos provided by the Smithsonian NNC.

The transfer of the Mint Coin Cabinet a century ago transformed the NNC into a national and world treasure and gave it an eclectic mix of coins, medals, and alternative currencies. These objects had served as reference material for U.S. Mint officials and engravers since the Cabinet was formally established in Philadelphia in 1838. In the decades that followed and with funds appropriated by Congress, the Cabinet grew to include patterns, proofs, and uncirculated coins and medals made by the U.S. Mint itself, as well as a wide range of private issues and international coins and medals from across the globe. By the time the collection was transferred to the Smithsonian in 1923, it numbered over 18,000 objects and included many rare and unique specimen.

A century later, the U.S. Mint continues to help grow the National Numismatic Collection, by providing annual transfers of the new coins and medals it produces. The Mint Cabinet remains the centerpiece of the National Numismatic Collection and an incomparable resource for the study of U.S. coinage and its many connections to the history of money worldwide.

People interested in joining the Friends of the NNC to attend future events can learn more here: https://americanhistory.si.edu/giving/friends-of-numismatics

About the NNC: https://americanhistory.si.edu/national-numismatic-collection/collection