COLORADO SPRINGS, CO.- In late 2017, the Money Museum in Colorado Springs received a donation of items related to the production of the Sacagawea dollar, which was designed by Colorado College graduate Glenna Goodacre in 1999.

Included in the donation is one of three plaster-casts of the original design, a plaster of the final design, a test piece in bronze to study the design with a polished finish and examples of the first coins struck by the U.S. Mint.

Other items that were donated include:

• “The Offering” – a beautiful small bronze statue showing Sacagawea looking up to the heavens while holding her dollar up and out in front of her.

• A plaster showing an alternate version of the Sacagawea design, requested by Secretary of the Treasury Robert E. Rubin, without Sacagawea’s baby Jean Baptiste on her back. Produced in 1998, it was much less popular than the design with the child.

• A terracotta rendition, used as a test piece to study the relief of the design.

• A large (7 ¾”) cast bronze of the final design.

A renowned sculptor, Glenna Goodacre sculpted the obverse for the Sacagawea dollar, which was released for circulation in 2000 and produced until 2008. The Sacagawea coin was introduced into circulation when the U.S. Treasury realized the stock of Susan B. Anthony dollars (last struck in 1981) was critically low.

The United States Dollar Coin Act of 1997 required a new circulating gold-colored dollar coin, and the Sacagawea design was chosen. Goodacre’s design is still used today for the obverse of the ongoing Native American dollar series.

Known primarily for her bronze statues, one of Goodacre’s works is also displayed in the sculpture garden of the Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center at Colorado College. The sculpture, “Basket Dance,” depicts three Native American women facing back to back, performing a traditional basket dance.

The Money Museum, which is operated by the nonprofit American Numismatic Association, was recently designated as a “Blue Star Museum.” The Blue Star Museum Program is a collaboration among the National Endowment for the Arts, Blue Star Families, the Department of Defense and museums across America. Blue Star Museums offer free admission to the nation’s active-duty military personnel and their families, including National Guard and Reserve, from Memorial Day weekend through Labor Day.

The museum is currently featuring an exhibit about World War I – Trenches to Treaties: World War I in Remembrance.