Leif Ericson Millennium Silver Dollar
Issued in 2000
2000 Leif Ericson American Commemorative Silver One Dollar Proof Reverse
2000 Leif Ericson American Commemorative Silver One Dollar Proof Obverse
Coin Description
Reverse
Features the ship that transported Leif Ericson and his band of Viking explorers to North America.
Obverse
Shows Leif Ericson wearing a Norse cap.
The Story
Nearly 500 years before Columbus, Leif Ericson came to the New World. This Viking and his fellow Norsemen landed on the shores of North America at the start of the last millennium—around A.D. 1000. Unlike his icy homeland, the shores Ericson discovered were rich with fruit, flowers, and other plants. He named the new place “Vinland” for its many grape vines.
Exploring was nothing new to Leif Ericson. His father, Erik the Red, was the first European to sail to Greenland and set up a community. In fact, he moved his family there from Iceland when Leif was a small child.
The Icelandic government also created its own commemorative coins to honor the famous explorer.
2000 Leif Ericson American Commemorative Silver One Dollar Proof Reverse
2000 Leif Ericson American Commemorative Silver One Dollar Proof Obverse