Gold First Spouse Coins

Since 2007, the United States of America began honoring the First Ladies by minting and issuing a series of gold coins. The authorization of the Gold First Spouse coins is enshrined in the 2005 Presidential $1 Coin Act. The coins were authorized to be ½ ounce gold coins with a fineness of .9999 and a USD10 face value. A gold coin bearing the Liberty emblematic and a reverse depicting the theme of the life of the respective president would be issued whenever the president did not have a spouse while serving.

The first Gold First Spouse coin was in honor of Martha Washington. Abigail Adams, Thomas Jefferson’s Liberty and Dolley Madison coins were also issued in 2007. Four coins in honor Elizabeth Monroe, Louisa Adams, Andrew Jackson’s Liberty and Martin van Buren’s liberty were issued in 2008. In each subsequent year, the trend to issue four Gold First Spouse coins has continued. This is because the Gold First Spouse coins are issued in tandem with the annual issuance of the Presidential $1 Coin program. All Gold First Spouse coins measure 26.49mm in diameter.

On the obverse, the first coin has the portrait of the respective spouse engraved at the center of the Spouse coin and encircled. The name of the spouse runs above the portrait in capital letters e.g. “MARY TODD LINCOLN”. The inscriptions, “IN GOD WE TRUST” and “LIBERTY [YEAR] W” appear on the left and right of the portrait. The coin series’ number and period during which the spouse was the First Lady run anticlockwise below the portrait e.g. “16th 1861-1865”.

The reverse of the Gold First Spouse Coins would at times feature memorable aspects of the life of the spouse or a collection of images representing her major accomplishments, themes or contributions. The inscription, “UNITED STATES OF AMERICA” runs clockwise above the engraved portrait in the upper half of the coin. Starting halfway from the left edge of the coin and running anticlockwise is the inscription, “E PLURIBUS UNUM · $10 · ½ OZ. .9999 FINE GOLD”. Being legal tender, trading in the Gold First Spouse coins is exempt from sales tax and VAT.