Appearing as the eighth year for the 24-karat series, the US Mint will issue the 2014 First Spouse Gold Coins to honor the spouses of the former Presidents of the United States of America.
Coins in the series are each struck from one half ounce of .9999 fine gold to either proof or uncirculated condition. The Mint strikes the coins at its West Point facility to a diameter of 1.043 inches and a thickness of .0.074 inches.
The First Spouse Coins honor the wives of the former Presidents with a portrait of them on the obverse of each. Surrounding the portrait are the inscriptions indicating who is portrayed, the years of their service, the order of their service, the year of issue, IN GOD WE TRUST and LIBERTY.
Shown on the reverse of the strikes is a design emblematic of the life of the honored individual. Also shown are the inscriptions of UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, E PLURIBUS UNUM, $10 and 1/2 OZ .9999 FINE GOLD.
The coins were authorized under the Presidential $1 Coin Act (Public Law 109-145). This same act authorized a few other coins including a series of $1 coins honoring the Presidents themselves. These Presidential coins are released at a rate of four per year in the order upon which they served. The Mint also releases these spouse coins on a similar schedule tied to the releases of the Presidential strikes.
2014 will see a total of four First Spouse Gold Coins issued by the Mint :
- Florence Harding Gold Coins , honoring the wife of Warren G. Harding
- Grace Coolidge Gold Coins, honoring the wife of Calvin Coolidge
- Lou Hoover Gold Coins, honoring the wife of Herbert Hoover
- Anna Eleanor Roosevelt Gold Coins, honoring the wife of Franklin D. Roosevelt
Although not required for the 2014 issues, the authorizing Act also made allowances for those instances when a President served without a spouse, or when the President was married to more than one individual during their tenure.
