The American Samoa Quarter will be the fourth release of the 2009 DC & US Territories Quarter Program. This one year program will follow the popular 50 State Quarters Program.
The reverse design features items used in special Samoan ceremonies against a background image of the coastline. The items include the ava bowl and the whisk and staff. The reverse was designed by Stephen Clark and sculpted by Charles Vickers.
The inscriptions read “American Samoa,” “Samoa Muamua Le Atua” (translated: “Samoa, God is First”), “E Pluribus Unum,” and the date.
Two other finalist designs were proposed. The first featured a man holding a dried coconut cup used during the ava ceremony. Surrounding his image are coconut leaves, breadfruit tree leaves, and taro leaves. The second proposed design portryas a collection of symbols representative of American Samoa. This includes a guesthouse, headdress and bowl
The final design selection was announced by the US Mint on December 15, 2008. The coin is scheduled as the fourth release for 2009.
Coin Specifications:
- Mintage: TBD
- Designers: William Cousins after John Flanagan (obverse), Stephen Clark (reverse)
- Composition: 91.67% copper, 8.33% nickel (clad), 90% silver, 10% copper (silver proof)
- Diameter: 24.26 mm
- Weight: 5.67 grams
- Thickness: 1.75 mm
- Edge: Reeded
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