Hawai'i Commemorative Quater

 Proof coins use specially treated coin blanks, which are struck multiple times to ensure a sharp design.  They are extraordinarily brilliant, have a mirror-like background and a frosted, sculpted foreground.  The silver proof set is struck in 90 percent silver.  Each set comes in a sealed case and specially printed box with a United States Mint Certificate of Authenticity.

The sets are available for purchase at local coin shops, on the United States Mint’s website, www.usmint.gov, or by calling their toll-free number 1-800-USA-MINT (872-6468).

Hawai‘i’s Commemorative Quarter completes the set of 50 state quarters and is expected to be released into general circulation in November of this year.

The Hawai‘i quarter design, entitled “Hawai‘i, the Island State,” depicts the King Kamehameha I statue on the right side of the coin, with his hand stretching toward the eight main Hawaiian islands.  The State motto, “Ua mau ke ea o ka ‘āina i ka pono” (The life of the land is perpetuated in righteousness), is in the lower left side of the coin.  At the top of the coin are the words “Hawaii” and the year “1959,” when Hawai‘i was admitted to the Union.  “E Pluribus Unum” (Out of the many, one) is at the bottom.

The process to select Hawai‘i’s quarter design began in February 2006 when Governor Lingle convened a 36-member commission that included individuals from across the state, representative of Hawai‘i’s diversity.  The members included leaders from the community, government, business, education, labor, Native Hawaiian organizations, and culture and the arts.  In addition, a member of the American Numismatic Association, an organization dedicated to the study and collection of coins was on the commission.  Five high school students from O‘ahu, Maui, Kaua‘i and the Big Island also were part of the commission.

The Commission solicited the public’s input and invited people to submit themes and concepts that it used to develop five narratives that were submitted to the U.S. Mint, which returned actual designs approved by the Secretary of the Treasury.  The Commission invited the public to vote for their favorite design in an online poll.  The Governor made the final selection in April 2007, based on recommendations from the Hawai‘i Commemorative Quarter Advisory Commission and results from the online poll.