There were two different commemorative coin series that were struck by the United States Mint in the year 2001. One of these series was the Capitol Visitor Center Commemorative Coins. The strikes were distributed on February 28, 2001, and there were a total of six coins that were completely distinct to each other.
Congress approved the series with the 1999 Capitol Visitor Center Commemorative Coin Act (Public Law 106-126). That rule limited gold coin mintage to 100,000, silver dollars to 500,000, and half dollars to 750,000.
A single Corinthian column, which is the same sort of column that can be found on the Capitol building, is depicted on the obverse of the commemorative coin that represents five dollars in gold.
On the back, there is a picture depicting the structure of the Capitol building when it was first constructed. E. Jones, a former Chief Sculptor and Engraver at the United States Mint, was responsible for the design of both.
The old construction of the Capitol is overlaid on top of the present structure of the Capitol on the obverse of the silver dollar. Ms. Marika Somogyi was the one who designed it. Sculptor and engraver John Mercanti of the United States Mint is responsible for the design of the reverse, which depicts a bald eagle that is covered in a flag.
The half-dollar commemorative features the old structure and the current building shape. The designer was Dean McMullen. The reverse has a blend of Alexander Shagin and Marcel Jovine designs with 16 stars representing the number of states in the Union when the 6th Congress met, the first in the new edifice.
These coins' surcharges went to the Capitol Preservation Fund to build, maintain, and preserve a new Capitol Visitor Center.