2017-09-22 Fri

The U.S. Mint will have their hands full in 2019 as few panels have come up with 64 design proposals for the reverse of five America the Beautiful quarter dollars. The Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee reviewed the proposed coin designs on Sept. 19, with the Commission of Fine Arts to evaluate the same designs on Sept. 20 and make recommendations.

The CCAC discussed the proposed design themes for the five 2019 quarter dollars by teleconference. Out of which, design sketches have been rendered by members of the U.S. Mint’s engraving staff and outside artists with the U.S. Mint's Artistic Infusion Program.

The entities the 2019 quarter dollar designs commemorate, followed by the number of designs submitted on the theme, are:

Lowell National Historical Park (Massachusetts) — 18 designs

American Memorial Park (Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands) — nine designs

War in the Pacific National Historical Park (Guam) — 10 designs

San Antonio Missions National Historical Park (Texas) — 15 designs

Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness (Idaho) — 22 designs

On 19th September, the CCAC members made certain suggestions for designs for four of the quarter dollars and chose a design for a fifth coin but asked the Mint to make some refinements that could be reviewed at a later meeting.

Refinements were requested to the preferred American Memorial Park design.

The design features a Chamorro boy saluting the American flag while resting on the shoulder of a soldier at the Memorial Court of Honor and Flag Circle. The memorial honours the sacrifice made by those who lost their lives in the Mariana Campaign during World War II.

The CCAC members discussion revolved around adjusting the relationship between the background and foreground elements, with suggestions that the flags in the background are made smaller or faded back and the two people in the foreground are enlarged.

The recommended design for the Lowell National Historical Park quarter dollar depicts a mill girl spinning thread that is stylized to look like water. It indicates the importance of the canal system, powering the mills throughout the factories at Lowell. A water wheel is in the background.

The recommended design for the War in the Pacific National Historical Park quarter dollar showcases a wave of American forces coming ashore at Asan Bay, strengthening the number of troops already on the island in the fight for the island of Guam and its eventual freedom during World War II.

The CCAC suggested a design for the 2019 San Antonio Missions National Historical Park. The design should include elements of the Spanish Colonial real coin, in its iconography and composition of four quadrants, to pay tribute to the missions. Within the quadrants are symbols of the missions. Wheat symbolizes farming and cultivation of the mission lands. The arches and a bell tower symbolize fortress, community and home. A heraldic lion represents Spanish cultural heritage. A symbol of the San Antonio River represents irrigation methods and life-sustaining resources harnessed by the missions.

The recommended ?Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness quarter dollar for Idaho depicts a scene found far from human habitation, focusing on tall conifers and a wolf against a star-filled sky, evoking a sense of remoteness.