Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-11-06
BIG CHANeE IN GOLD COIN
SUNKEN INSTEAD OF RAISED
RELIEF THE NEW PLAN.
First Time It Has Ever Been Tried
in This or Any Other
Country.

There is now about to DE coined a
new e-dollar gold piece at the United
States minis in Philadelphia, San Fran
cisco and Denver. This coin is quite
novel in it's appearance. being struck
on a different plan from any coin here
tofore coined in this or any other coun-
try Last year while President Roose-
Welt was explaining to DR.. William
Sturgie Bigelow of Boston, a friend.
the mechanical difficulties met with in
the effort to bring to success the gold
coins Of the st. Gaudens design, es-
pecially that referring to the CONNER
cial desire that the coins should stack
or pile to uniform height. the idea
came to the latter named gentleman
that high or strong relief of design on
a coin might be obtained by depressing
the design below the field or face of
the coin, instead of raising it above,
as was being done in all coinage opera
tions, thereby the field being flat and
uniform in thickness would insure a
stacking" and would permit of the
pieces being piled to uniform height.
In all other coins the wear comes on
the highest points of the relief In
these the fat surface takes the wear
and protects the relief, which is de-
pressed below it. the shape of the de-
preston following the outline of the
relief This system of countersinklnS
a relief is one of the oldest forms OF
sculpture in stone. Egypt is full of
examples of it. 1t has been little used
in modern times except in Japan, where
it finds restricted application chiefly
in wood carving. Tt has never been APP
piled to coins. The idea of so applying
it was DR.. Bigelow's. Acting on his own
responsibility, he asked Bella l.. Pratt.
an artist of ST. Botolph studios. Bos-
ton. to make an experimental design
to illustrate the principle This model
was submitted to the President, and the
practicabtlity of this new idea in coin
age appealed SO strongly to him 1T was
decided that the experiment of making
a coin on this principle should be tried
The design of a real Indian head with
war bonnet of feathers was adopted for
the diverse side and the President Sc
lected the design of a real eagle, stand
ing for the reverse side: and Mr.. Pratt
was commissioned to prepare models
for the engraver of the United States
mint 1T Philadelphia. The model work
was done during the summer and the
dies made. and a few days ago the d.
rector of the mint was able to show
the President sample coins from the
factory that the now form of the five
dollar piece was promptly adopted and
it was further decided that the two
and-a-half dollar pieces should be of
the same design. The coins struck from
the new dies, therefore. will be the
gold half eagle and quarter eagle of the
future and will be known as the Bige-
low Pratt design.
That the artist in producing faithful
representations of both the real Indian
and the real eagle has reached re-
markable degree of success, persons fla
miliar with those subjects must attest.
The engraving work. executed by
Charles T. Barber, engraver of the
United States mint service, is remark
ably fine and sharp in detail showing
consummatc skill and an artistic hand.
The new coin bears the motto In
God We Trust 1t will be made in
such quantities as to afford everybody
n piece who has the money or currency
to give the equivalent in exchange