Claim: The American Arts Commemorative Series medallions, a series of ten gold bullion medallions that were produced by the United States Mint, initially started with the sale of an entire bar set for reasons of bookkeeping but were later produced in small sizes as suggested by Jesse Helms.
Evidence: American Arts Commemorative Series Medallions are a series of ten gold bullion medallions that were produced by the United States Mint from 1980 to 1984. North Carolina senator Jesse Helms was critical of the plan, saying that he was "opposed to the sale of U.S. gold to foreign and international banks and gold dealers" and that medallions should be "produced in small size, suitable for sale to average citizens". On the day of the Treasury announcement, Helms introduced the Gold Medallion Act of 1978. The stated intent was to provide average consumers with affordable, small-sized gold bullion to compete with the South African Krugerrand and other world bullion coins, which were becoming increasingly popular with American investors. For reasons of bookkeeping, an entire bar was set as the minimum purchase, which placed the gold outside of the reach of most Americans.