Early U.S Gold Coinage
It all started with Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution of the United States of 1857, which stated ; “ The Congress shall have the Power … To Coin Money. ” Establishing the U.S. Mint was a decade-long serve with many twists and turns along the room. Secretary of the Treasury, Alexander Hamilton prepared plans for a national Mint, with much of the basis done by the Secretary of State, Thomas Jefferson. Discussions about decimal denominations and coinage designs were worked out by April 1792, when George Washington signed the new legislation into law. The Mint Coinage Act of 1792 authorized output of ten-spot different coin denominations, three in aureate, five in ash grey, and two in bull. The first gold denominations were the $ 10 Gold Eagle, $ 5 Gold Half Eagle, and $ 2.50 Gold Quarter Eagles. early U.S. Mint Gold production, known as “ Early Gold, ” spanned the first 39 years, between 1795 and 1834. These first gold coins have respective designs of Liberty on the obverse of the coin. Gold coin designs range from the first Turban Head design in 1795, to the Capped Bust in 1807, the authoritative head in 1834, Liberty Head in 1838, and Saint Gaudens and indian Head designs in 1907, to the modern coin designs of today .
The Quintessential Longacre Design:
James B. Longacre, the third base U.S. Mint ’ second foreman engraver, is particularly known for his blueprint of the Liberty and indian Head respectively. The iconic designs are found on the full image of aureate denominations from $ 1 to $ 20. Liberty Head Gold coins were issued from 1849-1907 when they were replaced with entirely new amber coinage designs commissioned by President Theodore Roosevelt, who desired to make american ’ mho coinage into works of monetary art. Until 1849, the U.S. Mint produced alone $ 2.50, $ 5 and $ 10 coins. It was the huge discoveries of gold in California that inspired the mint of the big $ 20 double eagle aureate pieces. This caused the U.S. government to seek a more compact form to pay large-scale domestic and international transactions that were collectible lone in amber. The Type-I $ 20 gold coin was born when there was a great inflow of California gold combined with the need for a larger denomination gold coin .
Longacre ’ s design of the $ 20 Gold Double Eagle, bears the break of Liberty front left, amid a encircle of 13 stars on the obverse. The reverse features a bold formula of mid-19th century patriotic emblems, a face american english eagle with a large Union shield across its front, clutching an olive branch in its correct claw, and three arrows in its entrust claw. This was the largest appellation mint that was first minted as a form coin in 1849, then minted for department of commerce from 1850-1907. Depending on the purpose, the Liberty Head Double Eagles are divided into three design types :
• Type 1 – ( 1849-1866 ) Without motto on the inverse, and square sides on the carapace.
• Type 2 – ( 1866-1876 ) “ IN GOD WE TRUST ” motto in the egg-shaped of stars above the eagle, and a raw flowery, curved shield.
Read more: Sheldon coin grading scale – Wikipedia
• Type 3 – ( 1877-1907 ) “ TWENTY DOLLARS ” replaces “ TWENTY D. ” Chief Engraver William Barber updates Liberty, tilting her forward .
St. Gauden’s Double Eagle
The last issue of the Double Eagle was designed by Augustus Saint-Gaudens, a leading american Artist and Sculptor, who was commissioned by President Theodore Roosevelt to redesign America ’ mho neologism. The St. Gaudens $ 20 gold Double Eagle, in the first place struck in high-relief, is normally referred to as, “ The Most beautiful Coin in the World. ” All gold coinage came to a stop in 1933 during the acme of the Great Depression, with the sign language of Executive Order 6102 signed by President Franklin D. Roosevelt, making aureate illegal to own, except for “ Rare and strange ” coins, which were exempted from capture. U.S. Gold was illegal to own or produce between 1933 and 1974, when Congress made gold legal to own again by reversing the administrator order in 1974 .
The Gold Eagle
In 1985, the cute metals diligence changed forever when the Gold Bullion Coin Act was signed into law by President Ronald Reagan. The first base acquittance of the iconic Gold American Eagle in 1986, captivated the world with its beautiful historic design and collector value. It is one of the most search after coins produced by the United States and the annual liberation is generally highly anticipated, specially for collectors who are building sets. There are other democratic modern amber coins that feature Liberty prominently, like the 2017 American Liberty 225th Anniversary Coin, a one-ounce aureate Liberty high-relief mint minted to commemorate the 225th anniversary of the U.S. Mint. This 1 oz. gold Liberty coin features a modern rendition of an african-american woman as the inspiration for Liberty on the obverse and a beautiful flying bald eagle on the revoke. No count what your budget or preference of appellation or mint mark, there is a Liberty Gold mint waiting fair for you. The Liberty amber designs are classic american history, that is good as amber !
