Washington, D.C. — The U.S. Mint today introduced the Franklin D. Roosevelt Commemorative Gold Coin at the Four Freedoms Awards Dinner hosted by The Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt Institute at the Corcoran Gallery of Art.
“This splendid coin honors the legacy of one of our greatest Presidents,” said Mint Director Philip N. Diehl. “Introducing the coin at the Corcoran Gallery of Art is an especially fitting tribute to the Four Freedoms laureates, who will be honored tomorrow.”
At tomorrow’s Four Freedoms Awards presentation at St. John’s Church near the White House, the Institute will honor five outstanding Americans who personify FDR’s dedication to freedom: Katherine Graham of the Washington Post; former Senator Mark Hatfield of Oregon; Senator Daniel Inouye of Hawaii; Congressman Sidney Yates of Chicago, and William Gray, President of the United Negro College Fund.
The design for the obverse or “heads” of the FDR Gold Five Dollar Coin, U.S. Mint Sculptor/Engraver T. James Ferrell, is based on one of President Roosevelt’s favorite photographs: a portrait of the Commander–in–Chief reviewing the U.S. fleet in San Francisco Bay. The reverse or “tails” design, by U.S. Mint Graphic Designer James Peed bears a rendering of the Presidential Seal as displayed at FDR’s 1933 inauguration.
Legislation sponsored by Representative Norman Y. Mineta (D–CA) and signed into law on October 20, 1996, by President Clinton as part of P.L. 104–329 authorizes the Mint to produce no more than 100,000 of the FDR Commemorative Gold Coin, which will be available from the U.S. Mint beginning May 15 by calling 1–800–MINT–USA.