If you think that coin is unattainable, the 1933 St. Gaudens 1927-D is so rare, in fact, that a MS-65+ sold for a whopping $2,160,000 at auction in 2020. Gaudens, in general, is relatively rare – even though hundreds of thousands to millions were minted each year. This massive destruction of coins created some exceptionally rare issues. This included millions of the beautiful pre-1933 US coins. You may think, well, why did people give up their gold for less than it was worth? Perhaps because the executive order’s harsh criminal penalties…Īs voluntary sales and involuntary seizures of gold increased, millions of gold coins were melted down into bullion. Thus, Executive Order 6102 was issued, essentially seizing gold from US citizens in order to bolster the gold reserves (and financial firepower) of the federal government. However, they faced a problem: They were running out of gold! This meant that every dollar in circulation needed to be backed by a certain amount of gold held in US reserves.ĭuring the Great Depression, the federal government needed to increase the money supply in order to prop up a weakened economy. Ouch!Īt this time, the US was still on the Gold Standard. Citizens were asked (forced, really) to turn in their gold, in exchange for $20.67 per troy ounce.Īround 2 years later, the official price of gold was raised to $35 per ounce: A roughly 70% increase over what the US government had paid its own citizens for their gold. The act made it illegal to own gold bullion or coins in the United States. Things changed dramatically in 1933, when president Franklin D. Gold coins were commonplace for much of the United State’s early history. Part of what makes the pre-1933 US coinage so special is its fascinating history. Indeed, the design was a direct result of president Theodore Roosevelt’s push to beautify US coinage. Gaudens, for example, is widely considered to be one of the most beautiful US coins ever produced. Many of these coins were stunningly beautiful, as well as valuable. The face value of these gold coins ranged from as little as $1 to as much as $20 - sums that were worth substantially more than they are today. Gaudens (1907-1933) and the $20 Liberty Gold Double Eagle (1849 – 1907), and around a dozen others. The US mint produced millions of gold coins each year, with editions like the $20 St. Many of them are rare, some exceptionally rare, even though millions were produced. In the modern era, these coins are collector’s items. They were in common circulation, and used for everyday purchases as well as a means of saving and building wealth. Prior to the 1930’s, gold coins were commonplace in the United States.
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