Oct 17
| I just finished watching Mark Apsolon's 3rd Spare Change video and I must say I am really enjoying this series! This episode focused on the Liberty Head $20 U.S. gold coin, known as the double eagle. The term "eagle" is used in reference to gold coins indicating $10 in value*. A double eagle means $20 and there are also half eagles ($5) and quarter eagles ($2.50). The Liberty Head (or coronet) Double Eagle was minted between 1849 and 1907. The Liberty Head Double Eagle was at one time minted in each of the 5 of the mints: Philadelphia, Denver, San Francisco, Carson City, and New Orleans. As the gold rush flooded the market with a large supply of gold, the value of gold could have potentially crashed. The U.S. government began minting $20 double eagles and $1 gold coins in addition to the $10 eagle coins that were already in circulation. This helped use up some of the increased supply of gold. Mark mentions "sleepers" which is the term for coins with a low mintage yet the value in price guides has not yet recognized their rarity. I've noticed these sleeper coins myself as I've parused price guides over the years. This is one possible reason that we see coins selling on eBay for either double or half their price guide values. *The U.S. coin system was based on a base-10 counting system: 10 cents = 1 dime, 10 dimes = 1 dollar, 10 dollars = 1 eagle. |