DANIEL WEBSTER | Coins Look for new designs on Jefferson nickel

The changed face of the Jefferson nickel, sure to be the hobby's big news in 2004 and 2005, will provide ample lore for historians. When, for example, was the last time a coin was announced before its design was certain?
Legislation authorizing the design change was buffeted by Virginia's congressional delegation, which demanded that Jefferson and Monticello be represented on the nickel "forever." A compromise allowed the change to celebrate the Louisiana Purchase and the Lewis and Clark expedition, but only for two years. All that negotiating took time, and the U.S. Mint had to plan a new coin design before it had authorization for it.
Many design ideas flowed through Congress until it was settled that a version of the current portrait of Jefferson would be retained, while the new reverses would be added during the two-year period.
It appears that the 2004 nickel, to be introduced sometime in the spring, will carry a version of the Jefferson Peace Medal to recognize the 200th anniversary of the Louisiana Purchase in 1803. That date will clash with the 2004 date on the obverse.
Then, in autumn 2004, a new reverse design will appear showing the boxy keelboat that carried Lewis and Clark up the Missouri River.
Even as those designs are being readied, the mint is considering changes in the Jefferson portrait itself. The changes could come in 2005 and again in 2006, when a new version of the old Jefferson nickel will be struck.
Collectors will be poring over every sample they can find, and coin cataloguers will be busy identifying every variation.
Out of nowhere
Even tiny principalities and states need their own coinage. Pride and historical identity are at stake. When Luxembourg announced that its 2003 mint sets will appear this month, the response was often quizzical. Luxembourg?
Sure enough, the country with borders that seem to touch each other is issuing 50,000 examples of its eight circulating coins. They range from 2 euros to 1 cent.
The sets of uncirculated coins, struck in brass, bronze and cupronickel, cost $39.50 plus $4.50 for shipping. Queries go to Coin and Currency Institute, Box 1057, Clifton, N.J. 07014, or (866) 471-1441, or by e-mail to mailcoin-currency.com.
XDaniel Webster is a columnist for the Philadelphia Inquirer.