U.S. Mint art for the top contenders for the Great Basin National Park quarter design
In the fall of 2011, both the Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee (CCAC) and the Commission of Fine Arts (CFA) reviewed designs for the 2013 Great Basin quarter. All designs featured the ancient bristlecone pine as a central element, and two showed mountains in the background, while another showed a Big Horn Sheep along with the pine. Designs were praised, but the only concern was the amount of detail for the pine needles and how it would render on the coin.
As some of the world’s oldest living organisms, bristlecone pines deserve a spot on the Great Basin National Park quarter. In 1964, Prometheus, the oldest known tree on earth, was discovered only after it had been cut down. Its rings revealed Prometheus was about 4,900 years old. This meant the tree was already growing when Sumer in Mesopotamia was at its height and construction began on Stonehenge in England and the Great Pyramid in Egypt.
Whether it’s a visit to the arid, high desert, the short hike to the ancient bristlecone pine groves or a journey into the Lehman Caves on a 60-90 minute tour, this amazing park has something for everyone.
