An example of the most famous American collector’s coin of them all is heading towards a landmark sale at an auction this month.
The 1913 specimen of a Saint-Gaudens double eagle owes much of its value to its outstanding condition.
It is being sold by Heritage Auctions, and is currently the subject of a $65,000 bid ($78,000 with buyer’s premium) well over two weeks before the Summer Fun US Coins Signature Auction closes on July 20.
The Saint-Gaudens design is highly regarded. The Irish-born designer was personally sought out by President Teddy Roosevelt for a redesign of US coinage that he intended to be the country’s most distinguished.
The reverse of the Saint-Gaudens double eagle. The motto was added after the designer’s death, in response to public complaints about its absence in the 1907 original. Image courtesy of Heritage Auctions.
The beauty of the Saint-Gaudens designs are now generally acknowledged. But the work proved tough to produce in large quantities, and the designer died before production could begin.
An accident of history has made one Saint-Gaudens double eagle the most valuable US coin ever. The 1933 issue was completely withdrawn as the US Government reacted to the effects of the Great Depression by ending the issue of gold coins.
The coins should have been destroyed, but a tiny number survived and one was sold for $18.9 million in 2021.
The coin being sold this month is an older example that is not in that bracket.
It was struck in 1913, and Heritage Auctions say: “In the recent authoritative reference Saint-Gaudens Double Eagles, Roger Burdette pegs the survivorship of the 1913 at about 5,700 coins in all grades but notes that all but about 500 of these coins came out of European holdings and are thus heavily abraded.”
Because of their high value, double eagles were of limited use as circulation coins, so many were used in making large payments, often between governments.
Augustin Saint-Gaudens was revered for the quality of his work but had a long, difficult, on-off relationship with the US Mint.
This coin gains value for its certification by CAC (a coin grading and authentication service) and condition. It is rated as MS65, which means it is “mint state” with a 65 out of 70 grading for its quality and condition.
Heritage add: “Just two CAC-endorsed Gems have appeared in our auctions within the last decade. One was an MS65 PCGS CAC coin in our May 2022 Central States Signature, which realized $102,000; the other was the Simpson MS65+ PCGS CAC coin in our August 2022 ANA Signature, which realized $192,000.”
