Tuesday, August 4, 2009

An interesting packaging error has surfaced for the John and Letitia Tyler Presidential Dollar and First Spouse Medal Set. Some sets have been identified with the Letitia Tyler Medal mounted on the Julia Tyler display card.

Because John Tyler had a first and second wife, the US Mint is issuing two separate Presidential Coin and First Spouse Medal Sets- one for each wife. The Letitia Tyler Set was released on July 14, 2009. The separate set for Julia Tyler has not yet been released by the US Mint and is currently scheduled for August 25, 2009.

The fact that the Julia Tyler Set has not been released further legitimizes the packaging error. After the release of the next set, one could argue that someone switched the medals to create the packaging error after the sets left the Mint. In reality, I believe this would be hard to accomplish without looking obvious, since each set is sealed in plastic cellophane and the coin and medal are securely mounted on the card.

After one of the packaging errors surfaced on eBay, an anonymous reader added a comment to the most recent Mint News Blog post to inform others about the mistake. This comment prompted several readers to more closely examine their own sets.

John Crosby, known as modern-coins on eBay, checked his shipment of 99 sets and located one example with the packaging error. The incorrectly packaged set that he identified is pictured at the top of this post. His sets were ordered on July 24 ,2009 and shipped by the United States Mint on July 30, 2009.

He plans to sell the packaging error set, but he is not certain when. There are currently three packaging error sets listed for auction on eBay with high starting bid prices. To date, no sets listed have reached the end of the auction or received a bid. Here's a link to the current listings for the packaging error.

This represents the second mix up by the United States Mint for First Spouses with the same last name. The Mint had previously created a mule error which combined the obverse of the Abigail Adams Medal with the reverse of the Louisa Adams Medal. These errors have been found within 2007 First Spouse 4 Medal Sets. The mule errors continue to sell for approximately $400 each.

Although the current Mint mistake falls into the category of packaging error, in all likelihood these sets will sell for premiums, especially if the number discovered remains low. If you ordered and received the John & Letitia Tyler Coin and Medal Set, be sure to check your sets for the packaging error!

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