by KYW's John Ostapkovich
The U.S. Mint in Philadelphia has a new exhibit highlighting the rebirth of a coin. This is not one that will be jingling around in many pockets.
The 2009 Ultra High Relief Double Eagle gold coin is not only a mouthful, but a wallet-ful, costing $300 more than the price of an ounce of gold, so right now the total is about $1250. It is a remake of a 1907 coin that was supposed to mark a turning point in American minting, but was so difficult to produce it was redesigned after one year.
Digital technology has made production somewhat easier, but coin store worker Eric Nelson expects its appeal to be limited:
"It's a very expensive coin. It will be popular, but only a certain percentage of people will be able to afford it."
Mint officials say the high-tech crafting of this coin will improve production of others for general circulation.
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