2010 United States Mint Proof Set

The United States Mint will begin sales of the 2010 Proof Set later this week on July 22, 2010 at 12:00 Noon ET. This closely follows the release of the 2010 Mint Set, which was first offered for sale one week earlier.

The 2010 Proof Set will contain a total of 14 different proof coins, struck at the San Francisco Mint. The following coins are included in each set:

2010-S Proof Lincoln Cent

2010-S Proof Jefferson Nickel

2010-S Proof Roosevelt Dime

5 - 2010-S Proof America the Beautiful Quarters featuring Hot Springs National Park, Yellowstone National Park, Yosemite National Park, Grand Canyon National Park, and Mount Hood National Forest.

2010-S Proof Kennedy Half Dollar

4 - 2010-S Proof Presidential Dollars featuring Millard Fillmore, Franklin Pierce, James Buchanan, and Abraham Lincoln.

2010-S Proof Native American Dollar

The number of coins in the set is down from the 18 coins included in last year's set. As a result the coins are packaged in three plastic lenses (down from four). Separate lenses contain the Presidential Dollars and America the Beautiful Quarters. The cent, nickel, dime, half dollar, and Native American Dollar are contained in a final lens. The outer cardboard box carries a new design featuring an image of the San Francisco Mint.

The price of the 2010 Proof Set is $31.95. This reflects a price increase of $2 compared to last year's set, despite the lower number of coins included. The 2008 Proof Set, which is the most recent set to contain the same arrangement of denominations, was priced at $26.95.

The release of last year's 2009 Proof Set was met with a high level of enthusiasm due to the inclusion of the four different 2009 Lincoln Cents struck in a special composition of 95% copper. This year's set does include the inaugural year for the America the Beautiful Quarters Program and the 2010 Lincoln Presidential Dollar. However, the excitement surrounding these specific coins is somewhat diffused by the fact that they have already been released in the component 2010 Presidential Dollar Proof Set and 2010 America the Beautiful Quarters Proof Set.

It seems likely that sales of the 2010 Proof Set will fall short of the total sales attained for the 2009 Proof Set. The general trend for this year's US Mint product sales has been down, as some collectors have been dismayed by the price increases, coin designs, and the general product line up.

The debut sales figures for the recently released 2010 Mint Set came in at 200,764. This sets a slower pace than the prior year 2009 Mint Set. The full sales report is available on Coin Update News.