Heritage World Coin Auctions
Long Beach Signature US Coin Sale 1256 8-9 Jun 2017
View prices realized
► Sale information
Find similar lots
Saint-Gaudens Double Eagles
1921 $20 MS62 PCGS. The 1921 is among the keys to the Saint-Gaudens double eagle series, an issue that was not released in any great numbers and which at one point in the 1940s was thought to have a population of only four or five coins. Over time, additional examples came to light, many with light wear from circulation. New research by Roger Burdette finds that all of the 1921 double eagles known today originated from pyx residuals and a small quantity that was forwarded to the Mint Cashier in 1921. These two sources combined would have made a maximum of 582 coins available to the public. The existence today of numerous AU-level coins suggests that the majority of the population entered circulation briefly before the issue was recognized as a rarity. Issued more than a decade before the gold recall order of 1933, the 1921 did not even benefit from generic hoarding.
PCGS estimates that only about 150 1921 Saints are known, while more recent studies by Burdette indicate a population in the neighborhood of 175 coins. Most of these are lightly circulated or heavily abraded. PCGS and NGC combined report only 25 pieces finer than the current example, including likely resubmissions. Burdette estimates that only about 22 coins are known in those grades. In the top grades, high six-figure prices are the norm, and in the past the seven-figure barrier has been breached. Thus, the present MS62 coin, while itself a rarity and headliner in our current sale, is actually among the more accessible Mint State examples known.
We have not previously handled this specific coin. It shows a bold strike and satiny straw-gold luster with scattered but light surface abrasions. A tiny allow spot near the obverse rim at 8:30 is usable as a pedigree identifier. We have seen a number of low-end Uncirculated pieces with eye appeal inferior to that of the present coin.
HID02901242017
1921 $20 MS62 PCGS. The 1921 is among the keys to the Saint-Gaudens double eagle series, an issue that was not released in any great numbers and which at one point in the 1940s was thought to have a population of only four or five coins. Over time, additional examples came to light, many with light wear from circulation. New research by Roger Burdette finds that all of the 1921 double eagles known today originated from pyx residuals and a small quantity that was forwarded to the Mint Cashier in 1921. These two sources combined would have made a maximum of 582 coins available to the public. The existence today of numerous AU-level coins suggests that the majority of the population entered circulation briefly before the issue was recognized as a rarity. Issued more than a decade before the gold recall order of 1933, the 1921 did not even benefit from generic hoarding.
PCGS estimates that only about 150 1921 Saints are known, while more recent studies by Burdette indicate a population in the neighborhood of 175 coins. Most of these are lightly circulated or heavily abraded. PCGS and NGC combined report only 25 pieces finer than the current example, including likely resubmissions. Burdette estimates that only about 22 coins are known in those grades. In the top grades, high six-figure prices are the norm, and in the past the seven-figure barrier has been breached. Thus, the present MS62 coin, while itself a rarity and headliner in our current sale, is actually among the more accessible Mint State examples known.
We have not previously handled this specific coin. It shows a bold strike and satiny straw-gold luster with scattered but light surface abrasions. A tiny allow spot near the obverse rim at 8:30 is usable as a pedigree identifier. We have seen a number of low-end Uncirculated pieces with eye appeal inferior to that of the present coin.
HID02901242017