Proposed designs for the congressional gold medal to honor Merchant Mariners of World War II were recommended March 18 by the Commission of Fine Arts and March 23 by the Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee.

The panels considered 15 obverse and 13 reverse designs, executed by members of the U.S. Mint engraving staff and outside Artistic Infusion Program artists, and both panels agreed in their choice of designs.

The recommended obverse depicts five Merchant Mariners, representing an engineer, a helmsman, an officer, a deckhand, and a steward, with the bow of a Liberty ship in the background. On the right side is the inscription MERCHANT MARINERS OF WORLD WAR II.

The recommended reverse design portrays a convoy of Liberty ships in columns stretching to the horizon as each steams ahead to complete its mission. A V for “Victory” is superimposed behind the inscription FULL AHEAD TO VICTORY.

Both recommended designs are the preferences of the liaison from the American Merchant Marine Museum.

After the gold medal is formally presented by the congressional leadership, the medal is to be conveyed to the museum for display and research and made available for display elsewhere.

Each congressional gold medal is composed of .9995 fine gold, weighs 21.69 ounces, and measures 3 inches in diameter.

It costs more than $30,000 to produce each medal, according to U.S. Mint officials.

The designs approved by Treasury Secretary Janet Yellin or her designee will be sculpted by the Mint’s engraving staff.

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