Privy Marks on 2020 Coins

By Steve Feltner - May 1, 2020

In 2020, the United States Mint honors the 75th anniversary of the end of World War II by issuing different coins with privy marks throughout the year.^[1] The United States is not a country usually known for using privy marks on much of its coinage. While other countries, such as Canada, China, Australia, and others, are more well associated with using privy marks on many of their coins, the United States has only rarely used this feature on its coinage until late.

Privy mark on obverse of 2020 quarters to honor the 75th anniversary of the end of World War II.

The first U.S. coins to bear the privy marks from 2020 are the National Park of American Samoa and the Weir Farm National Historic Site Quarters that are being struck at the West Point Mint. The coins were issued by the U.S Mint earlier this year, on April 6, 2020. These special 2020-W Quarters include a privy mark of a "V75" inside an outline of the Rainbow Pool from the World War II Memorial located in Washington D.C. The U.S. Mint will produce a total of only 10 million 2020-W Quarters for circulation. Since there are five different quarter designs being issued in 2020, this means that only two million of each quarter design will be issued. Additionally, the 2020-W Quarters with privy marks will be mixed with regular P- and D-mint mark coins and then issued to the Federal Reserve so that they can be distributed into circulation. Officials with the U.S. Mint believe the coins will be in circulation within four to six weeks after being issued.

This is not the first time the U.S. Mint has struck coins with privy marks. In 2009, the U.S. Mint added an eagle privy mark on the reverse of the 2009-W Proof Platinum Eagle. Last year’s 2019 Innovation Dollars also have a privy mark of a stylized gear on the obverse side of the coin. So, the U.S. Mint has been using the privy mark on coins more often as of late than it has in the past. This may be an indication that the U.S. Mint is following suit from other countries and will possibly be using privy marks more often on U.S coins. Whatever the Mint decides to do in the future is anyone's guess.

Privy marks were created as early as the 14th century in England for coins struck under King Edward III. Over the years, privy marks have been used to identify a particular silversmith, engraver, designer, a coin set, mintages, and even to commemorate or honor special events. Privy marks can come in the form of letters, images of different animals, or images of different objects.^[2] For example, the 2012 1 oz. Canadian Maple Leaf has a privy mark of the Titanic, with the privy mark in this instance used to honor the centennial of the iconic but ill-fated ship.^[3]

This is also not the first time the United States Mint has produced business-strike coins at the West Point Mint. Over the years, the West Point Mint has assisted other mints in producing coins for circulation, such as from 1974 through 1986, when it struck Lincoln Cents for commerce purposes. However, these coins struck at the West Point Mint did not bear the "W" mintmark. In 1996, the West Point Mint also produced special 1996-W Roosevelt Dimes that do carry a "W" mintmark.

As we look toward the production of these exciting new, limited-mintage 2020 Quarters struck at the West Point Mint, we await with anticipation the Mint’s icing on the cake with these special privy marks on the 2020-W Quarters. Last year, the United States Mint also struck a limited quantity of 2019-W quarters for circulation. And that 2019-W Quarter program was a huge success, as collectors all over the country were in the search for some of these low-mintage coins, bringing a wave of new collectors and excitement into the hobby. The year 2020 seems to be no different! It's an exciting time for numismatics with all these different attributes being added to some new coins, not to mention some boasting very limited mintages.

At PCGS, we are also very excited about the new 2020-W Quarters with privy marks and limited mintages being issued. Additionally, we have the PCGS Coin Quest 2020 program, providing collectors with special labels for the 2020-W Quarters. For more information on how to submit coins to PCGS for grading or for answers to any questions on how to submit coins to us, please give us a call at 1-800-447-8848 or please contact PCGS Customer Service.