The 2007 Coin of the Year Award was captured by the United States Marine Corps 230th anniversary silver dollar dated 2005.
An international panel judged it the top issue in a field of 10 category winning coins struck in 2005. The competition, which included two rounds of voting, is sponsored by World Coin News, sister publication to Numismatic News.
The winner was announced July 2 by Numismatic News publisher William A. Bright.
The Marine dollar will be recognized in a special award presentation to the U.S. Mint slated for Aug. 8 at the American Numismatic Association?s World?s Fair of Money in Milwaukee, Wis.
There was strong competition from the other category winners and representatives of the world mints that created them will also be honored at the ANA ceremony.
In the first round of balloting, the United States had won in three categories with three different coins.
The Marine Corps dollar, KM-376, won in the Best Crown category.
The Oregon state quarter in copper-nickel clad alloy, KM-372, was named Best Trade Coin.
Most Popular Coin honors went to the copper-nickel American Bison five-cent piece, KM-368.
However, Australia?s 2005 ?Dancing Man? silver $1 coin marking the end of World War II topped two categories in the first round, the only entry to do so.
The ?Dancing Man? was the top vote getter as Best Contemporary Event Coin and Most Innovative Coinage Concept. For the latter category, the judges were impressed by the fact that the man does a full circle as the coin is moved. The $1 coin is KM-747a.
Germany was also powerfully positioned with two category winners in the first round of voting.
Taking the top place in the category of Most Historically Significant Coin was Germany?s silver 10 euro commemorating the 100th anniversary of Albert Einstein?s theory of relativity. It is KM-238.
Germany also won the top place for Best Gold Coin. This time it was a 100-euro coin for the World Cup Soccer tournament hosted there in 2006. The coin is KM-237.
The other three category winners were Austria, Belarus and Israel.
Austria?s 20-euro depicting the ship S.M.S. Saint George won the voting in the Best Silver coin category. It is KM-3127.
Topping the Most Artistic Coin category was a silver 20-rubles from Belarus. The coin depicts an Easter egg. It is KM-99.
A 2 new sheqalim of Israel struck in silver, honoring Moses and the 10 Commandments won the voting for Most Inspirational Coin. It is KM-400.
The Coin of the Year Award was created by World Coin News to encourage and honor creativity in the coinage issues of the mints of the world. It was first given in 1984 for 1982-dated coinage.
The first winner was the George Washington commemorative half dollar, which was the first commemorative struck by the United States since 1954.
There is a built-in delay for nomination and consideration of coin issues because not every nation issues coinage in the year of the date on the coin.
KM numbers are Krause-Mishler numbers, which is the internationally recognized identification system for the world?s coins that is used in the Standard Catalog of World Coins series of reference books published by Krause Publications.
