Today, Feb. 20, the United States Mint released its 2020 America the Beautiful Quarters Silver Proof Set™. Found within it are five 2020 coins composed in 99.9% silver with reverse designs honoring national sites in American Samoa, Connecticut, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Vermont and Kansas.
This product continues the U.S. Mint’s annual tradition of offering a silver proof set with the year’s quarter dollars. It marks only the second year where the set’s coins are in 99.9% silver. Earlier sets hold quarters in 90% silver.
Contents and Silver Weight of Set
The five coins within the set feature designs honoring:
- National Park of American Samoa in the U.S. territory of American Samoa,
- Weir Farm National Historic Site located in the state of Connecticut,
- Salt River Bay National Historical Park and Ecological Preserve in the U.S. Virgin Islands territory,
- Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historical Park in Vermont, and
- Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve in Kansas.
Each quarter is struck at the U.S. Mint facility in San Francisco and showcases a collector-grade proof finish with frosted designs against mirror-like backgrounds.
Like other quarters in the Mint’s America the Beautiful series, their obverses (heads side) bear a George Washington portrait. The image of the first President of the United States originally appeared on the 1932 circulating quarter dollar and has been seen on quarters, with some slight changes, ever since.
2020 Proof Silver Quarter Specifications
| Denomination: |
Quarter
|
|---|---|
| Finish: |
Proof
|
| Composition: |
99.9% silver
|
| Weight: |
6.343 grams
|
| Diameter: |
0.955 inch (24.26 mm)
|
| Edge: |
Reeded
|
| Mint and Mint Mark: |
San Francisco – S
|
Combining the five coins of the set yields a total silver weight of 1.01966 troy ounces. Previous 90% composition sets have a silver weight of 0.904239 troy ounces.
Price and Ordering
Pricing for this year’s set is $42.50 as compared to last year’s release which remains available for $36.95.
2020 America the Beautiful Quarters Silver Proof Sets are available directly from the U.S. Mint via this link to its annual proof sets. Phone orders are accepted by calling 1-800-USA-MINT (872-6468). No mintage, ordering or household limits apply.
As a side note, the U.S. Mint released the clad version of this set, the 2020 Quarters Proof Set, back in January for $18.50.
I realize these are Proof coins, & all beautiful designs IMHO this year & in .999 fine silver for only the second year, but does anyone else think a $5.55 increase in price from $36.95 last year to $42.50 for the 5-coin set this year is a bit too much?
NumisdudeTX
I a word “YES!”. In another word “GREED!” The hobby going down in flames and the mint is fanning the flames!!!!
here’s what I am thinking, with some background… the mint operates on a ‘revenue neutral’ basis – it funds its own operations from revenues, rather than from the federal budget. It only has 3 sources of revenue: seigniorage on circulating coins (costs less to produce them than face value, except cents and nickels), bullion (but there’s not much margin there) and of course collector coins. There’s no way to increase seigniorage on the circulating coins (unless they start making higher denomination coins that actually get used), and there’s no practical way to increase profit on bullion sales. So that just… Read more »
that’s a good point.here might be another reason for raising the prices.since i retired i have a hobby other than coin collecting and it makes me a few bucks.it being bronze castings,and if i made a casting and sold the piece for $300 bucks and it sold within one hour after i put it on sale. then the buyer flips that piece for $500 bucks and makes a good profit,and this guy continuously does this.well pretty soon i.m gonna start thinking if he can get this price why can’t i? then this makes me want to raise my prices because… Read more »
K ROB:
That would justify an issue price of say, $499 for the 2019-S reverse proof ASE’s, not for the vanilla products like proof sets and silver presidential medals that are unlikely to command a premium any time soon.
gary, good point.but if someone buys 10,000 sets and they sell each set for $50 bucks above cost, what does that come to? magnificent mike mezhak and other big dealers are the reason for the price increase.this might justify price increases across the board.this is my opinion.
Sales have been trending down because of poor quality control. Love collecting coins from the mint, but there is also no up side for investing in mint coins or very few. I am older and very few products will go up in value most will go down. I call the Red Book the feel good book because if there not rare coins the price guide is unrealistic. Having said all that I will still purchase coins from the mint lol.
The Mint could raise slightly the $2 over spot silver price it charges its bullion coin Authorized Purchasers for each SAE $1 coin & the $9.75 over spot silver it charges the APs for each 5-ounce ATB coin. That special pricing for coin dealers hasn’t been changed in years, if I remember right!
NumisdudeTX
Seth Riesling:
Yes, they could/should have allowed collectors to buy bullion coins directly from the mint on day one at similar prices. Of course, the dealers would not make the big $ $ like on the first ATB 5 oz in 2010 or the first palladium coin issued and it might have made collectors happy which they apparently do/did not want.
Once the annual silver proof sets come out and flippers suck out the “W” proof Jefferson, the set will be broken up for whatever they can get…the .999 Kennedy will of course bring $12+ and the ,silver quarters lens will be had for about half the mint price for the set alone…
Who can we sell to? Coin dealers, Ebay or someone… None of the coins issued last year by mint can make profit!
But we’ll never know how many they sold, apparently, since they’ve forgotten how to count.
This set is such a waste….i’ll wait until the entire silver proof set comes out.