Earlier this week the United States Mint reduced prices on four silver proof sets in response to declining silver prices. The bureau had already shaved prices in early May for several of its silver coins for the same reason.
At about noon ET on May 22, 2013, the U.S. Mint made the following product pricing adjustments:
- 2012 & 2013 Quarters Silver Proof Sets went to $36.95 from $41.95
- 2013 US Mint Silver Proof Sets went to $60.95 from $67.95,
- 2013 US Congratulations Sets went $59.95 from $64.95
Silver products produced for collectors always have price tags that are well higher than their melt values. Still, the U.S. Mint monitors precious metals prices to keep their product pricing within a certain premium range. That means the Mint will also raise prices on products when silver soars, as the Mint is just as committed to make sure it never sells coins for less than their melt values.
Each annually issued Quarters Silver Proof Set has five quarters struck from 90% silver for a content weight of about 0.904 ounces. The five national site or national park quarters in last year’s set are those representing:
- El Yunque National Forest of Puerto Rico,
- Chaco Culture National Historical Park of New Mexico,
- Acadia National Park of Maine,
- Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park of Hawaii and
- Denali National Park of Alaska
The five national site or national park quarters in this year’s set are those depicting:
- White Mountain National Forest of New Hampshire,
- Perry’s Victory and International Peace Memorial of Ohio,
- Great Basin National Park of Nevada,
- Fort McHenry National Monument and Historic Shrine of Maryland and
- Mount Rushmore National Memorial of South Dakota
Visit this site’s homepage and follow the linked states or years for information about each of the national sites or national parks honored with quarters from 2010 through to 2021.
For some background, the silver quarters set from last year was released on January 10, 2012 and has sales of 150,299 while the silver quarters set for this year was introduced on January 8, 2013 and has sales of 98,093.
2013 Silver Proof Sets include the same five silver coins in the standalone quarters silver proof sets, plus a 90% silver dime and 90% silver half-dollar. They also have clad coins consisting of the penny, nickel, four Presidential $1 coins and the Native American $1 coin. This set’s silver content is up at 1.34 ounces, giving it the highest coin melt value of the group. It was released earlier this month, on May 2, 2013, and has sales of 214,477.
Wrapping up the price changes, the 2013 US Congratulations Set has a single coin which is the proof American Silver Eagle from West Point. This coin has one ounce of 99.9% pure silver. The set’s sales are driven more by occasion. They are at 2,417 since released on April 30, 2013.