“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”
The opening line of the Preamble of the Declaration of Independence is perhaps the most remembered and well-known line in the complete document itself. As a celebration of the 30th year of American Eagle Platinum Proof coin, the United States Mint decided to design a whole new series around it. The 2018-2020 Preamble to the Declaration of Independence Platinum Proof Coin Series is now in its third and final phase of the program and will be released January 30th.
Following 2018’s “Life” design and 2019’s “Liberty”, 2020 is now capping the series off with the “Pursuit of Happiness.” Comprised of one-ounce of 99.95 percent platinum, the new design on the obverse will feature Lady Liberty harvesting the fruit of her labor with a young girl next to her. Carrying an overflowing cornucopia as a symbol of the “physical, intellectual, and spiritual bounty that only liberty makes possible”, they also represent all of the things that “nourish the body, enliven the mind, and satisfy the soul.” The home seen in the background, the orchard, and the silo also represent “American hopes, values, and aspirations” and bring the ideas of the complete series full circle--this includes “furrowed earth, to prairies and mountains, and to a field” used for agriculture. The facsimile of the word “Happiness” is seen in the Proof fields of the coin as a visual representation of the handwritten word from the Declaration of Independence. It includes what is known as the long “s” which is a letterform that was typical of the time when the document was written but is now no longer in use. The first “s” of the word is the identified long “s”.
Representing the Mint’s Artistic Infusion Program, or the AIP, designer Justin Kunz is responsible for all the obverse designs for the series while the constant reverse design was created by Patricia Lucas-Morris. She was also a part of the AIP. The reverse features an eagle in flight with an olive brand in its talons.
The Proof Platinum American Eagle will be accompanied by a Certificate of Authenticity and packaged in a black velvet satin-lined presentation case. The maximum mintage is capped at just 13,000 while the household limit is just one per person.