Alum's design wins international "Coin of the Year" award
Beth A. Zaiken 08 IL has been part of the US Mint's Artistic Infusion Program since 2019.
The US Mint's Artistic Infusion Program is a select group of US artists and designers contracted by the mint to help produce designs for coins and medals. AIP artists’ information is included in historical documents, Certificates of Authenticity, and promotional materials. The artist’s initials appear on the final coins or medals, along with the initials of the Mint medallic artist who sculpted the selected design.
Since joining the mint Beth has been rather successful, with 5 selected pieces already minted, and next year another 5 are going to be released, including the much anticipated Harriet Tubman silver dollar, for which her designs were selected for both the obverse and reverse. However, this year her very first coin design was selected and minted at a $100 high relief gold coin, also won an international Coin of the Year award for best gold coin (the COTY awards run 2 years after minting to consider market success among other things). This is a big deal for the US Mint, as the COTY is the biggest international recognition for worldwide numismatic arts. The design features a bucking mustang throwing off a saddle over a rising sun.
