The American Gold Eagle is an official goldbullion coin of the United States. Authorized under the Gold Bullion Coin Act of 1985, it was first released by the United States Mint in 1986. Because the term "eagle" also is the official United States designation for pre-1933 ten dollars gold coins, the weight of the bullion coin is typically used when describing American Gold Eagles (e.g., "1/2-ounce American Gold Eagle") to avoid confusion. This is particularly true with the 1/4-oz American Gold Eagle, which has a marked face value of ten dollars.
Details
Offered in 1/10 oz, 1/4 oz, 1/2 oz, and 1 oz denominations, these coins are guaranteed by the U.S. government to contain the stated amount of actual gold weight in troy ounces. By law, the gold must come from sources in the United States, alloyed with silver and copper to produce a more wear-resistant coin. In addition, sales of these and other specie coins from the US Mint are mandated, at least in part, to pay off the national debt.[1]
Obverse of an 1/10 oz American Gold Eagle of 2017
The 22 kt gold alloy is an English standard traditionally referred to as "crown gold". Crown gold alloys had not been used in U.S. coins since 1834, with the gold content having dropped since 1837 to a standard of 0.900 fine for U.S. gold coins. For American Gold Eagles the gold fraction was increased again to .9167 or (22 karat). It is authorized by the United States Congress and is backed by the United States Mint for weight and content.[2]
The obverse design features a rendition of Augustus Saint-Gaudens' full-length figure of Lady Liberty with flowing hair, holding a torch in her right hand and an olive branch in her left, with the Capitol building in the left background. The design is taken from the $20 Saint-Gaudens gold coin which was commissioned by Theodore Roosevelt to create coins like the ancient Greek and Roman coins.
From 1986 to 2021, the reverse design by sculptor Miley Busiek Frost (MB) featured a male eagle carrying an olive branch flying above a nest containing a female eagle and her eaglet. Frost says that her eagle design of the family of eagles is “a symbolic tribute to the American family, senior citizens and young people. Frost’s design drawing was sculpted for the reverse of the Gold Eagle by US Mint sculptor - engraver Sherl Joseph Winter (JW). Hence, on the reverse of these coins, the initials MB and JW are inscribed.
In 2021, the US Mint introduced a new reverse design on the American Gold Eagle featuring a close-up head portrait of an eagle. This design was created by US Mint artistic designer Jennie Norris (JN) and sculpted by US Mint medallic artist Renata Gordon (RG). Hence, Gold Eagles from 2021 onwards, show the initials JN and RG on each side of the eagle head design. Norris explains her design inspiration as follows: “The American Eagle is such a noble bird. I was hoping to capture the intensity of his stare through the close cropping. His gaze speaks of pride and wisdom passed down through generations of time.”[3]
Specifications
Gold Eagles minted 1986–1991 are dated with Roman numerals. In 1992, the U.S. Mint switched to Arabic numerals for dating Gold Eagles.
The 1⁄10, 1⁄4, and 1⁄2 troy oz coins are identical in design to the 1 troy oz coin except for the markings on the reverse side that indicate the weight and face value of the coin (for example, 1 OZ. fine gold~50 dollars). The print on the smaller coins is, therefore, finer and less legible than on larger denominations.
Each of the four sizes contains 91.67% gold (22 karat), 3% silver, and 5.33% copper.
Denomination
1/10 troy oz
1/4 troy oz
1/2 troy oz
1 troy oz
Diameter
16.5 mm
22mm
27 mm
32.70 mm
Thickness
1.19 mm
1.83 mm
2.24 mm
2.87 mm
Gross weight
0.1091 troy oz (3.393 g)
0.2727 troy oz (8.483 g)
0.5454 troy oz (16.965 g)
1.0909 troy oz (33.931 g)
Face value
$5
$10
$25
$50
The 22k gold alloyed makeup of Gold Eagle coins stands in contrast to the 24k Gold Buffalo Coin, which is minted entirely from .9999 fine gold, and therefore weighs less (1 troy oz or 31.1035 grams gross).
Value
The market value of the coins is generally about equal to the market value of their gold content, not their face value. Like all commodities, this value fluctuates with market forces. The face values are proportional to the weights except for the 1/4 oz coin.
While their actual selling price (purchasing power) varies based on the spot price of gold,[4] these coins carry face values of $5, $10, $25, and $50. These are their legal values, reflecting their issue and monetized value as "Gold Dollars", as opposed to standard bullion. They are legal tender[5] for all debts public and private at their face values. These face values do not reflect their intrinsic value which is much greater and is mainly dictated by their weight and the price of precious metal. For example, on September 13, 2019, the U.S. Mint sold the 2016 one-ounce coin ($50 face value) at $1,510.00.[6] Since the coins can be "paid" only at a disadvantage to the payer, they are generally held as collectibles rather than money, and for US taxpayers are subject to a high capital gains tax rate unless held in an individual retirement account.[7][8]
In addition to standard bullion coins (sometimes referred to as "scruffies"), the United States Mint also produces proof and uncirculated versions for coin collectors. These coins carry the Mint's mark ("W") beneath the date, and are produced exclusively at the West Point Mint in West Point, New York (formerly the West Point Bullion Depository).
Mintages
These final audited mintages from the U.S. Mint include coins sold both individually and as part of multi-coin sets.[9]
Annual bullion mintage
Year
$5 – 1⁄10 oz.
$10 – 1⁄4 oz.
$25 – 1⁄2 oz.
$50 – 1 oz.
1986
912,609
726,031
599,566
1,362,650
1987
580,266
269,255
131,255
1,045,500
1988
159,500
49,000
45,000
465,500
1989
264,790
81,789
44,829
415,790
1990
210,210
41,000
31,000
373,210
1991
165,200
36,100
24,100
243,100
1992
209,300
59,546
54,404
275,000
1993
210,709
71,864
73,324
480,192
1994
206,380
72,650
62,400
221,663
1995
223,025
83,752
53,474
200,636
1996
401,964
60,318
39,287
189,148
1997
528,515
108,805
79,605
664,508
1998
1,344,520
309,829
169,029
1,468,530
1999
2,750,338
564,232
263,013
1,505,026
2000
569,153
128,964
79,287
433,319
2001
269,147
71,280
48,047
143,605
2002
230,027
62,027
70,027
222,029
2003
245,029
74,029
79,029
416,032
2004
250,016
72,014
98,040
417,019
2005
300,043
72,015
80,023
356,555
2006
285,006
60,004
66,005
237,510
2007
190,010
34,004
47,002
140,016
2008
305,000
70,000
61,000
710,000
2009
270,000
110,000
110,000
1,493,000
2010
435,000
86,000
81,000
1,125,000
2011
350,000
80,000
70,000
857,000
2012
290,000
90,000
43,000
675,000
2013
555,000
114,500
57,000
758,500
2014
545,000
90,000
35,000
425,000
2015
980,000
158,000
75,000
626,500
2016
925,000
152,000
74,000
817,500
2017
395,000
64,000
37,000
228,000
2018
230,000
62,000
32,000
191,000
2019
195,000
38,000
30,000
108,000
2020
350,000
106,000
70,000
747,500
2021 Type-1
150,000
56,000
31,000
456,500
2021 Type-2
350,000
108,000
65,000
665,500
Annual proof mintage
During the series' inaugural year, the Mint only issued 1 troy oz proofs. It added 1⁄2troy oz proofs in 1987 and since 1988 has issued proofs in all four denominations. In 2009, due to increased worldwide demand for precious metals that caused supply shortages and the Mint's legal obligations to produce bullion versions, proof and uncirculated versions of the Gold Eagle were not issued.[10]
Year
$5 – 1⁄10 oz.
$10 – 1⁄4 oz.
$25 – 1⁄2 oz.
$50 – 1 oz.
1986
-
-
-
446,290
1987
-
-
143,398
147,498
1988
143,881
98,028
76,528
87,133
1989
84,647
54,170
44,798
54,570
1990
99,349
62,674
51,636
62,401
1991
70,334
50,839
53,125
50,411
1992
64,874
46,269
40,976
44,826
1993
58,649
46,464
43,819
34,369
1994
62,849
48,172
44,584
46,674
1995
62,667
47,526
45,388
46,368
1996
57,047
38,219
35,058
36,153
1997
34,977
29,805
26,344
32,999
1998
39,395
29,503
25,374
25,886
1999
48,428
34,417
30,427
31,427
2000
49,971
36,036
32,028
33,007
2001
37,530
25,613
23,240
24,555
2002
40,864
29,242
26,646
27,499
2003
40,027
30,292
28,270
28,344
2004
35,131
28,839
27,330
28,215
2005
49,265
37,207
34,311
35,246
2006
47,277
36,127
34,322
47,092
2007
58,553
46,189
44,025
51,810
2008
28,116
18,877
22,602
30,237
2009
-
-
-
-
2010
54,285
44,507
44,527
59,480
2011
42,697
28,782
26,781
48,306
2012
20,740
13,775
12,809
23,630
2013
21,742
12,789
12,718
24,710
2014
22,725
14,790
14,693
28,703
2015
26,769
15,775
15,820
32,652
Annual uncirculated mintage
In 2009, the allocation of blanks for the legally required production of bullion Gold Eagles affected both uncirculated coin and proof availability. This suspension continued into 2010 for the uncirculated version. When production resumed in 2011 (without the fractional denominations which had been discontinued in 2008), it was met with a weak collector response.[11] The United States Mint provided audited and finalized annual production sales reports between 2006–2012.[12] Afterwards, they published production sales numbers in the weekly cumulative sales reports.[13] The mintage number is the Last Known Sale (LKS), which is the last sales figure published for that product before it was dropped from the sales report.
