2011 US Mint Uncirculated Coin Set

The United States Mint will begin sales of the 2011 Uncirculated Coin Set tomorrow, February 8, 2011 at 12:00 Noon ET. This is the third of the Mint's core annual sets that are being released earlier in the year in response to customer demand.
Each 2011 Mint Set includes a total of 28 different coins. There are 14 coins each from the Philadelphia and Denver Mints, placed in separate folders designed with the US Mint's new branding.

The following are included in each set:

2011 P&D Lincoln Cents
2011 P&D Jefferson Nickels
2011 P&D Roosevelt Dimes
2011 P&D America the Beautiful Quarters - featuring Gettysburg National Military Park in Pennsylvania, Glacier National Park in Montana, Olympic National Park in Washington, Vicksburg National Military Park in Mississippi, and Chickasaw National Recreation Area in Oklahoma.
2011 P&D Kennedy Half Dollars
2011 P&D Native American Dollars
2011 P&D Presidential Dollars - featuring Andrew Johnson, Ulysses S. Grant, Rutherford B. Hayes, and James Garfield.

The coins included in the set will feature a "brilliant finish," which represents a change from recent years. From 2005 to 2010, the US Mint had utilized a "satin finish" for the annual Mint Sets and certain other products.

According to a Mint press release, the reason for the change was to create more "aesthetically pleasing" coins. With the satin finish, contact marks resulting from coin-on-coin contact were more apparent. In separate statements, the US Mint also indicated that the change was in response to customer feedback and would serve to extend die life.

The US mint does seem to be trying to emphasize the difference between uncirculated coins included in the set versus circulating coins, stating, "United States Mint uncirculated coins are struck on special presses using greater force than circulating coins, producing a sharp, intricately detailed image, and feature a brilliant finish."

When the brilliant finish was previously in use, collectors did not differentiate the coins in the same way that they have differentiated the satin finish coins. Since 2005, when updating collections with new releases, some collectors would seek out examples of both business strikes issued for circulation in addition to the satin finish versions included in Mint Sets. The major grading services also separately classified "satin finish" coins from regular circulation strikes.

The price of the 2011 US Mint Uncirculated Coin Set will be $31.95 plus shipping and handling. This is the same as the price charged for last year's set, which included the same number of coins. However, the 2008 Mint Set, which also included 28 coins in the same arrangement of denominations, was priced at $22.95.

So far, the pace of sales for the 2011 annual sets already released by the US Mint have shown a decline from comparable prior year figures. The 2011 Proof Set had initial sales about 15% below the 2010-dated set. The 2011 Silver Proof Set initial sales were 13.4% below the debut figures of last year's set.

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