A replication of former U.S. Mint Chief Engraver Gilroy Roberts' artist's studio has found a permanent home for public exhibit at the Community College of Philadelphia in a structure that once served as the third Philadelphia Mint.

The exhibit is being developed as an outgrowth of the pledge of a $1.02 million donation from the Gilroy and Lillian P. Roberts Charitable Foundation to further educational outreach at the college.

The gift represents the largest single private donation in the school's 46-year history.

The donation will be used to exhibit and preserve items from the personal collection of Gilroy Roberts, the ninth chief engraver of the U.S. Mint. Roberts served in the presidentially appointed chief engraver's post from 1948 to 1964.

Officials at the college are hoping that the Roberts exhibit - planned for a circular hallway within the 1700 Spring Garden St. building's rotunda - can be ready by late fall. However, officials suggested the process could be accelerated after learning from Coin World March 28 of the American Numismatic Association World's Fair of Money to be held Aug. 7 through 11 at the Pennsylvania Convention Center in Philadelphia. That would allow the college to showcase the exhibit during the ANA show.

The Spring Garden Street structure that served as the third Philadelphia Mint is located just over a mile away from the convention center and the ANA's 225,000-square-foot bourse.

Until the formal preparation and installation of the Roberts exhibit, Murphy said, "the collection is being stored right in the Mint Building. As you may imagine, there are many VERY secure places in the building from the days when coins were minted in precious metals."

The Roberts Collection includes many of Gilroy Roberts' sculpturing tools, including some homemade items; plaster models and galvanos for coins and medals, including some of the coins and medals produced; sculptures and paintings; materials used for design inspiration; coin and medal drawings; photos of the third Philadelphia Mint from its days as a functional production facility; and even an engine used for engine-turned engraving, Murphy said.

In addition to displaying Roberts' personal items, the exhibit is also being designed to include educational interactive components.

Since the college's acquisition of the Mint Building in 1971, the facility's rotunda has primarily been used for receptions and art exhibitions.

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