Marine Corps Commemorative Sponsored by Murtha Named "Coin of the Year"

Marine Corps Commemorative Sponsored by Murtha Named
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Congressman John P. Murtha, Chairman of the HouseAppropriations Subcommittee on Defense, announced that the Marine Corps230th Anniversary Silver Dollar has been named "Coin of the Year" (COTY) bya distinguished panel of international judges.
Murtha was the chief House sponsor and champion of the 2005 bill toauthorize the minting of the coin to commemorate the 230th anniversary ofthe United States Marine Corps. The coin sold out rapidly upon its releasein 2006, far exceeding average commemorative coin sales. It was produced atno taxpayer cost and raised $6 million to help pay for the new NationalMuseum of the Marine Corps in Quantico, VA.
The U.S. Mint annually issues two commemorative coins to celebrate and honorAmerican people, places, events or institutions. The Marine Corps coinmarked the first time the U.S. Mint has honored a branch of the U.S.military.
The Marine Corps 230th Anniversary Silver Dollar features a rendition of JoeRosenthal's iconic photograph of the raising of an American flag by Marinesat Iwo Jima in 1945. The coin's reverse features an engraving of the MarineCorps emblem, the Eagle, Globe and Anchor.
The 2007 COTY Awards span a two-year judging period. Coins from throughoutthe world are selected on the basis of excellence in artisanship,practicality, and general appeal. U.S. coins received four COTY Awards inall, the most in the history of the United States Mint's participation inthe COTY competition.
The Marine Corps 230th Anniversary Silver Dollar also took the "Best Crown"award, which recognizes dollar-sized silver coins approximately 20 to 30grams in weight and 33 to 42 millimeters in diameter. The awards, sponsoredby World Coin News, will be presented in a ceremony on August 8, 2007, atthe Nation's largest coin show, the American Numismatic Association'sWorld's Fair of Money(r), in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.