Letter
Dear Mr. Ryder:
In its meeting of 18 April, the Commission of Fine Arts reviewed design alternatives for a gold coin and silver medal to commemorate the 400th anniversary of the Mayflower voyage. The Commission was pleased to take into consideration the preferences of the Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee (CCAC), and provided the following recommendations and comments.
Gold coin. Consistent with the preferences of the CCAC, the Commission members recommended alternative 06-GC-O for the obverse and 07-GC-O for the reverse. As part of the necessary coordination of text for this pairing, they suggested that the inscriptions “Liberty” and “In God We Trust” be placed on the reverse in association with the Pilgrims, rather than on the obverse depicting a Native American family.
Silver medal. Consistent with the preferences of the CCAC, the Commission members recommended alternative 04A-SM-O for the obverse and 11-SM-R for the reverse; they commented that this pairing effectively conveys the theme of survival, contrasting the vulnerability of the newly arrived Pilgrims with the self-sufficiency of the Native Americans.
As always, the staff is available to assist you with future submissions.
Sincerely,
/s/Thomas E. Luebke, FAIA
Secretary
David Ryder, Director
United States Mint
801 9th Street, NW, 8th Floor
Washington, DC 20220