Information about John M. Mercanti

John M. Mercanti is an American sculptor and engraver. He was the 12th Chief Engraver of the United States Mint from 1991 until his retirement in late 2010. His signature on coins is formed by his initials: JM.

Mercanti was born in Philadelphia. There, he attended the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, the Philadelphia College of Art and the Fleisher Art Memorial School. He also served in the Pennsylvania Army National Guard for six years.

In 1974, Mercanti joined the United States Mint as a sculptor-engraver after working as an illustrator. On May 19, 2006, he was appointed Chief Engraver of the U.S. Mint (also known as Supervisor of Design and Master Tooling Development Specialist). The position had been officially vacant for 15 years following the retirement of Elizabeth Jones, the Mint's eleventh Chief Engraver, in 1991. Mercanti was Chief Engraver until 2010, after which the post was vacant until Joseph Menna became the 13th Chief Engraver in 2019.

After his retirement, Mercanti has done work for the Perth Mint - on coins issued for Australia (the Australian Wedge-tailed Eagle range), and for B.H. Mayer, on coins issued for the Cook Islands.