The US Mint has now unveiled the designs for the upcoming 2009 First Spouse Gold Coins. Next year will feature five different coins instead of the usual four since one of the Presidents had a first and second wife.

Next years coins will honor: Anna Harrison, Letitia Tyler, Julia Tyler, Sarah Polk, and Margaret Taylor. The artists versions of the designs are included below.

Anna Harrison First Spouse Gold - She was the wife of President William Henry Harrison. He was only President for 30 days. Notably Mrs. Harrison never made the journey to Washington DC due to an illness. The reverse depicts the First Lady sharing her joy of teaching with children.

Letitia Tyler First Spouse Gold - She was the first wife of President John Tyler. She also served as the Second Lady briefly during Willaim Henry Harrion’s presidency. The served as First Lady until her death in 1842. The reverse depicts her with her two children at Cedar Grove Plantation.

Julia Tyler First Spouse Gold - She was the second wife of President John Tyler. They were married on June 26, 1844. She served as the First Lady for the final eight months of his presidency. The reverse depicts her dancing with her husband.

Sarah Polk First Spouse Gold - She was the wife of President James K. Polk. Mrs. Polk served as her husband’s private secretary during his Presidency. The reverse design portrays her working in this capacity next to her husband.

Margaret Taylor First Spouse Gold - She was the wife of President Zachary Taylor. She spent 30 years following her husband during his military career. The reverse design shows her nursing a wounded soldier returning from the battlefield.

The sales figures for the latest release of the First Spouse Gold Coin Series are encouraging. The latest coin honoring Martin Van Buren’s Liberty First Spouse Gold Coin was released on November 25, 2008.

The sales figures through November 30, 2008 show 2,845 proof coins and 1,603 uncirculated coins sold. This makes a total of 4,448 coins altogether. While this is a very far cry from the one day sell outs for the first three issues of the series, this is a stronger initial performance than other recent releases.

The reason for some of the renewed interest in the series might be the design of the coin, which is taken from Christian Gobrecht’s Liberty Seated Dime. Even though, arguably less creative than brand new designs, these classic designs often strike a chord with many collectors. Previous First Spouse Gold coins that have re-used classic designs also include Thomas Jefferson’s Liberty and the recent Andrew Jackson’s Liberty.

These “Liberty” series coins might one day be viewed as an interesting subset of the First Spouse Gold coin series. For President’s who served their terms in office without a spouse, the obverse designs are taken from circulating coins of their era. The next coin which will re-use a classic design will be James Buchanan’s Liberty, slated for 2010 release.

A second reason for the renewed interest in the series might be the lower pricing. The US Mint recently repriced all 2008 First Spouse Gold coins to levels more appropriate for the current price of gold. The latest coins were released at the same price levels.

It will be interesting to continue monitoring First Spouse Gold releases to see if the latest coin does in fact represent a shift in collector perspective and a renewed interest in the series.