US Mint begins path to Trump 250th gold coin after Fine Arts approval

A federal arts commission approved the final design for a 24-karat gold commemorative coin bearing President Donald Trump’s image, clearing the way for the U.S. Mint to begin production as part of the U.S. 250th birthday celebrations on July 4.

The U.S. Commission of Fine Arts approved the design at a March meeting “without objection,” according to the AP report. The approval followed a presentation of the coin’s final design by the Mint’s acting chief of the Office of Design Management, Megan Sullivan, during that meeting.

In a statement, U.S. Treasurer Brandon Beach said the Treasury is “thrilled to prepare coins that represent the enduring spirit of our country and democracy” and that there is “no profile more emblematic for the front of such coins than that of our serving President, Donald J. Trump.”

Sullivan said the design review cleared the way for production, but the Mint did not provide a final count of coins. She also said the coin’s size and denomination had not yet been decided, even as some Fine Arts commissioners discussed preferences ranging from smaller formats to larger ones.

Sullivan told commissioners that Trump had approved the coin design, while also pointing to Treasury authority for the project. She said: “It is my understanding that the secretary of the Treasury presented this design, as well as others, to the president and these were his selection,” according to the AP account of the meeting.

In the background of the approval, federal law restricts living presidents from appearing on U.S. currency. The AP report said Sullivan described the Mint’s plan as using authority from the Treasury secretary to authorize the minting and issuance of new 24-karat gold coins, which Scott Bessent used to get around the prohibition and put Trump on a coin.

The AP report described the coin’s visuals in detail. On the front, the coin shows Trump in a suit and tie with a stern expression; lettering spells “LIBERTY” and “1776-2026” appears beneath it. The words “IN GOD WE TRUST” are on the bottom, and the coin includes stars on each side. The reverse side shows a bald eagle midflight, with “UNITED STATES OF AMERICA” on the right and “E PLURIBUS UNUM” on the left.

Commissioner Chamberlain Harris, who the AP described as a top White House aide to Trump, said the design was “fitting” in part because it uses a “current sitting president” for the 250th-year commemorative coin. Commissioner James McCrery II, described as the architect on Trump’s design proposal for a White House ballroom addition, urged commissioners to choose a larger format, saying in remarks reported by AP: “I think the president likes big things.”

Sullivan indicated the Mint is looking at a coin size larger than its 1-ounce gold coin, which is about 1.3 inches (3.3 centimeters) in diameter, and she said the largest Mint coin is 3 inches (7.6 centimeters). “so we’re looking somewhere in there,” Sullivan said in the AP report, as commissioners weighed how large the coin should be for the limited-run commemorative effort.