2008 Carson City Sesquicentennial Medal, 1 Troy Oz. Silver

2008 Carson City Sesquicentennial medal. Carson City was founded in 1858 by Abraham Curry, who later became director of the Carson City Mint. The medal's obverse shows the Carson City Mint building and a relief map of the Carson City area. The location of Carson City (the Nevada state capitol) is indicated on the map by the star. The angle in the California-Nevada border is shown over Lake Tahoe. At the upper right corner of the map (where the pick and shovel cross) is the location of Virginia City and the Comstock Lode. The reverse shows a portrait of Abraham Curry along with the reverse of an 1870-CC Silver Dollar (the first coin type struck at the Carson City Mint). The coin cameo has been modified to show the Nevada state motto "Battle Born" (a reference to Nevada's statehood being finalized during the Civil War in 1864).

This medal was originally proposed for an issue by the Carson City Collector's Club of America. No action was taken on this proposal by the club, and the city of Carson City eventualy issued their own Sesquicentennial medal that was struck on a coin press inside the Carson City Mint Museum. The medals available here were privately struck on a former Denver Mint coin press. All examples of this medal show a small die break inside the obverse rim at 7:00, and a similar break inside the reverse rim at 6:00. Due to these factors, only 45 pattern examples of this medal were struck, all in silver with a satin finish.

Diameter: 39mm.
Composition: 999 Silver.
Weight: 1 Troy Oz.
Edge: Reeded.
Holder: Double-pocket non-PVC "flip"-style hodler with signed certificate.
Final Mintage: 45.