US Mint 2009 Silver Proof Set

The United States Mint will release the 2009 Silver Proof Set on July 17, 2009 at 12:00 Noon ET. This year's set will feature 18 different coins, including 8 coins struck with a composition of 90% silver.

The sets are priced at $52.95 each. This represents an increase of $8 from the price of last year's set. The increase can be attributed to the increased size of the set from 14 to 18 coins. There are no ordering limits anticipated and the US Mint's product page can be found here.

Each set will contain the following coins:

2009-S Lincoln Cents - All four designs will be issued including Birthplace, Formative Years, Professional Life, and Presidency. As with the regular (clad) proof set, each Lincoln Cent will be struck with a composition of 95% copper, 3% zinc, and 2% tin. (Also referred to as bronze.)

2009-S Proof Jefferson Nickel

2009-S Proof Roosevelt Dime - stuck with composition of 90% silver.

2009-S Proof DC & US Territories Quarters - All six designs will be included featuring the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, US Virgin Islands, and Northern Mariana Islands. Each coin will be struck with a composition of 90% silver.

2009-S Proof Kennedy Half Dollar - struck with composition of 90% silver.

2009-S Proof Presidential Dollars - All four designs will be included featuring William Henry Harrison, John Tyler, James K. Polk, and Zachary Taylor.

2009-S Proof Native American Dollar

The Silver Proof Set has actually become a bit of a redundancy in recent years since the US Mint issues such a wide range of component proof sets. The 2009 Silver Proof Set will only include two coins which have not yet been released in other annual sets. These two coins are the 2009-S Silver Proof Kennedy Half Dollar and 2009-S Silver Proof Roosevelt Dime. All of the other coins in the set have already been released in one or more of the following sets: 2009 Presidential Dollar Proof Set, 2009 DC & US Territories Silver Proof Set, and the regular 2009 Proof Set.

For this reason, the release of the 2009 Silver Proof Set might be met with less enthusiasm than the regular 2009 Proof Set or the still unreleased 2009 Mint Set. The 2009 Mint Set has been delayed until the US Mint can resolve "unique tarnishing issues" with the Lincoln Cents.

It's worth noting that in the recent past, the release date for current year annual sets has usually marked the end of sales for the prior year set. As such, it seems likely that sales of the 2008 Silver Proof Set will end when this year's set goes on sale. This set is currently for sale on the US Mint's website for $44.95.