1969 Medal Philadelphia Mint Bronze 1 5/16"

Coin Details

Description

This 1969 bronze medal depicting the Philadelphia Mint is the smaller 1 5/16 inch (approximately 33mm) version of the facility medal issued in the same year. The reduced format offered collectors a more affordable alternative to the larger 1 1/2 inch version while still presenting an architectural portrait of America's premier coinage facility. Both sizes were typical of the U.S. Mint's souvenir medal program, which offered facility and commemorative medals in multiple formats to appeal to different collecting budgets. The obverse presents the Philadelphia Mint building in the compact 33mm format, requiring the engraver to adapt the architectural design to the smaller field while maintaining recognizable detail. The 1969 date again connects this medal to the milestone opening of the fourth Philadelphia Mint facility, a modern building designed to handle the enormous coinage demands of the late twentieth century. The new facility represented a quantum leap in production capacity, incorporating automated coin handling systems and high-speed presses that could produce coins at rates unimaginable to the craftsmen who operated the first mint's hand-operated screw presses in 1792. The reverse carries standard facility medal inscriptions. The 1 5/16 inch format was the standard small size used across the Mint's facility medal series, maintaining consistency with medals depicting other Mint and Treasury buildings. These smaller medals were among the most accessible products of the U.S. Mint's non-circulating programs, serving as affordable souvenirs for visitors and entry-level collectibles for beginning numismatists.

Rarity Notes

Bronze facility medal, 1 5/16 inch (33mm) format. Common U.S. Mint souvenir medal available at the facility gift shop.

Cross References

PCGS #413119; Philadelphia Mint facility medal; 1969 new Philadelphia Mint opening