Description

Released on January 22, 1993, this coin was authorized in commemoration of the first ten amendments of the Constitution of the United States, known as the Bill of Rights, and the role that James Madison played in supporting their adoption. The date of release bore no particular relationship to Madison or the Bill of Rights, which was added to the Constitution in 1789. The commemorative coin program included a silver half dollar and silver dollar coin, in addition to the gold coin. The designs for these coins were actually the result of a nationwide competition launched by the U.S. Treasurer.

The United States Bill of Rights comprises the first ten amendments to the United States Constitution. Proposed following the often bitter 1787–88 debate over the ratification of the Constitution and written to address the objections raised by Anti-Federalists, the Bill of Rights amendments add to the Constitution specific guarantees of personal freedoms and rights, clear limitations on the government's power in judicial and other proceedings, and explicit declarations that all powers not specifically granted to the federal government by the Constitution are reserved to the states or the people. The concepts codified in these amendments are built upon those in earlier documents, especially the Virginia Declaration of Rights (1776), as well as the Northwest Ordinance (1787), the English Bill of Rights (1689), and Magna Carta (1215).