If you have to think, you won’t buy

One week from today the Mint will put the next First Spouse gold coins on the market. Because Andrew Jackson, our seventh President, was a widower at the time, his First Spouse gold coin will feature a Capped Bust design that was used on coinage during his term of office, 1829-1837.

Will this classic design help sales? The Mint needs a boost from somewhere. Each new issue is being purchased by fewer and fewer collectors.

The Louisa Adams total is just about 7,000 coins. This number includes both the proofs and the uncirculateds.

When the first First Spouse coin was offered for Martha Washington, the 40,000 maximum was sold out the same day. The same held true for Abigail Adams and Thomas Jefferson.

Since Dolley Madison went on the market late last year, the pace of sales and the number of coins sold have declined. Dolley is only about three-quarters sold. Elizabeth Monroe is hardly more than Louisa Adams at just over one-quarter sold.

Will we ever have another sellout? That is a good question, but we will have to wait for approximately 33 more issues over the next eight or so years to find out.