Quarters!

I'm not a person who formally collects coins; my dad tried to give my collection a jump-start when I was younger, but I just never got into it. I think the minutia of looking at dates and tiny mint marks was just not exciting enough for me.

When I went to Germany and saw the Euro coins, though, that was different. The different designs on the back of the coins, each with some significance to the country it came from--now that was exciting! During my year abroad, I worked to collect all the Euros there were at the time; it was the most difficult to get ones from countries I hadn't visited, such as Portugal and Finland. I still remember how excited I was when I realized the woman in front of me in line at the tourist office in Amsterdam was from Finland. I swapped my German Euros for her Finnish ones.

I was similarly excited about the US 50 State Quarters program. Again, these were coins with very noticeable differences, which made collecting them a lot of fun. I don't buy the proof sets from the mint, I just wait until one of the quarters reaches me (or one of my friends and family) in regular circulation.

I've gotten sort of protective of these quarters. I was once waiting for the bus with a friend of mine, who realized that he had forgotten his bus pass. He came up with almost enough change for bus fare, but was 50 cents short. I had 2 quarters for my collection in my bag, but that was it. It was a tough call whether to keep them or give them to my friend. (Don't worry...I gave them to him. I'm not that heartless :) )

Last week was an exciting one for me, since I finally have collected all the quarters that have been minted. So far, 42 out of 50 states have quarters; Washington was the most recent state to have its quarter minted, and my wonderful husband found that one for me on Monday. It's a pretty cool-looking quarter, in my opinion.

All in all, most states have done a good job with creating a distinct design that represents their state. States quarters that include recognizable locations or natural formations, such as the Old Man of the Mountain on New Hampshire's quarter or Crater Lake on Oregon's quarter, are good design choices, as are products, animals, or events for which a state is well known. Florida's space shuttle, Louisiana's jazz, and Wisconsin's cheese have all developed this last idea well.

The quarters that frustrate me are the ones where the picture has no strong connection to the state. For example, Delaware. Delaware's quarter shows a colonial guy on horseback, with the words "The First State" and then "Caesar Rodney" below the horse. Apparently Rodney was the man who rode 80 miles in terrible conditions to submit the deciding vote for American independence. It's a great story, but not one that I immediately connect with Delaware. And it's also not a story that can be powerfully conveyed on the back of a quarter. Some states, such as Kansas and North Dakota, have even gone so far as to have essentially the same design, with both of them showing a buffalo. Now, I realize that these states might not have a lot to work with, but c'mon, you can do better than that!

Other quarters that frustrate me are the ones that just have some vague symbol and then the outline of the state. Texas, which has a star, and Pennsylvania, which has a keystone (not even a good symbol) and a statue honoring liberty, both fall into this category. New York's quarter has a similar design, but since their symbol is the Statue of Liberty, that's ok.

Some states' designs aren't obviously connected to the state, but they have done such a great job with the artistry of the quarter that it's ok. The designs of both the Mississippi and the Nevada quarter fall into this category--both quarters have very elegant lines that are quite beautiful.

So all this talk leads up to the following question: which state quarter is my favorite?

At this point, I have two: Vermont and Nebraska.

The designs on both quarters are artistically interesting, particularly the way the tree branches reach to the edges of the coin on the Vermont quarter and the way the sun's rays in the Nebraska quarter suggest an enormous expanse of sky. I also like how both quarters incorporate something that I associate with their state: in the case of Vermont, maple syrup, and in the case of Nebraska, the pioneers. The Chimney Rock addition on the Nebraska quarter is an added bonus--I'm not familiar with the landmark, but this quarter has taught me something about Nebraska by catching my attention with things that I already knew first. The motto "freedom and unity" on the Vermont quarter has a similar effect, although it has less of an impact because it's smaller.

So, if you're interested, visit the homepage of the 50 State Quarters Program, take a look at these coins for yourself, and see if you have a favorite of your own. And if you do, let me know!