It was born out of Nevada's silver boom. The Carson City Mint coined our money for decades, until 1893 when it closed…later becoming the Nevada State Museum. But museum curator Robert Nylen told me it’s still famous for the coins: "The coins that came out of Carson City. It just attracts coin collectors from all over the world."

Just as the San Francisco Mint was created to make coins from the California gold rush, Carson City's mint was built to make silver coins from our Comstock Lode. Nevada State Museum Coiner Woody Davis calls it, “The wild west mint. It’s the only mint building still in existence. Of all the 7 mints, this is the one in its original building."

150 years ago, “Coin Press #1” was cranking out coins. The original press still works, and all this week it’s making special commemorative sesquicentennial medallions. Nylen tells me, “It’s going to be a half-ounce of .999 silver, and on the face of the coin will be an image of the mint building and Abe Curry, the first superintendent."

Coins usually have some copper in them. The sesquicentennial medallions are 100% silver, sold for $75 apiece at the Nevada State Museum. They're made 1 coin at a time with a full turn of the huge wheel, applying tons of pressure on a silver ingot. Nylen says, “It's pretty durable. It’s an amazing machine, and it amazes me every time it operates."

There are only 4 coin presses like this in the world. Carson City has the only one still working. Coiner Woody Davis CALLS IT, “a 110-ton German-invented knuckle-joint press. It strikes it so tough, that it looks like a mirror. It has a mirror finish."

These are special coins, though the museum mints coins for collectors twice a month. They sell very well, for 2 reasons. Davis says, "The beauty of them and the value. There are 2 kinds of people in the world: coin collectors and coin investors!"

And if you want one of those medallions, they are $75 in the museum store. Or you can buy the silver disc and take it to coin press #1 and watch it being made. For times and other details, just click the link below:

http://mint150.com/event/coin-press-demonstrations-every-friday-saturday/