1861 $20 Liberty Head Double Eagle Gold NGC AU50 About Uncirculated Coin

Product Description

A 1861 (Philadelphia Struck) Liberty Head Double Eagle gold piece graded About Uncirculated 50 (AU-50) by NGC. This piece displays an original deep golden color/tone, nice light visible luster in the outer most peripheries and excellent visible details. The total mintage for this date & mint: 2,976,387. Please view our photos for additional information and ask any questions prior to purchase.

The $20 ‘Liberty Head’ Double Eagle gold piece is the largest denomination of gold coinage the United States Mint produced from 1849-1907. Thereafter, the only other pattern produced was the St. Gaudens (1907-1933). The California gold rush of the 1840’s left the United States government scrambling to patent new gold denominations with the surplus of gold bullion reserves. Named the ‘Double Eagle’ by its designer James B. Longacre, and the fact that it was twice the value of the $10 gold eagle, which up until 1849 was the highest denomination of legal gold tender. The obverse featured a depiction of lady liberty’s profiled bust, while the reverse brandished a bald eagle with wings outstretched and a shield. After the initial strike in 1849, a single pattern piece which resides in the Smithsonian Institute, circulation strikes began in 1850. Throughout its mintage, the Liberty Head double eagle went through a series of 3 different varieties. This does not include the 1861 ‘Paquet’ Reverse, named after its designer Anthony C. Paquet. After being commissioned to redesign Longacre’s double eagle due to unpopularity, Paquets reverse design was only struck in 1861 because of a flaw with the lowered rim that caused the coin to suffer abrasions more easily. In the aftermath, Longacres reverse was restored, and the parameters set for the double eagle remained the same throughout its mintage: .900 fine gold, .100 copper, a net weight of .96750 pure gold, total weight of 33.436 grams and featured a reeded edge with a 34mm diameter.