The $20 gold piece designed by Augustus Saint-Gaudens at Theodore Roosevelt’s direction — 33.44 g of .900 gold, struck 1907–1933, and home to the most valuable coin ever sold at auction.
History
- Struck 1907–1933: the $20 gold piece designed by sculptor Augustus Saint-Gaudens at President Theodore Roosevelt’s direction, the centerpiece of Roosevelt’s renaissance of American coinage.
- The 1907 High Relief issues (12,367 struck, Wire Rim and Flat Rim varieties) show the date in Roman numerals (MCMVII) and could only be struck on hydraulic medal presses with multiple blows — never adaptable to mass production.
- "IN GOD WE TRUST" was added to the reverse in 1908; the obverse star count rose from 46 to 48 in 1912 with new states.
- The 1933 double eagle: 445,500 were struck but never issued after President Franklin D. Roosevelt took the U.S. off the gold standard and ordered them melted.
Key dates & varieties
- 1933 — the sole 1933 double eagle legal for private ownership (PCGS MS65, formerly of Stuart Weitzman) sold for $18,872,250 at Sotheby’s on June 8, 2021 — the most valuable coin ever sold at auction.
- High Relief 1907 issues are the design keys of the regular series.
Specifications
- Weight: 33.44 g; fineness .900 (90% gold, 10% copper); 0.9675 troy oz of pure gold.
- Diameter 34 mm.
Collector notes
- Common-date Saints circulated heavily in Europe and survive in quantity — price tracks gold melt plus a modest premium except for high grades and rare dates.