About the Coin

The 1854-O $20 gold double eagle is listed in the book 100 Greatest U.S. Coins by Jeff Garrett and Ron Guth.

The Type 1 double eagle is by far my favorite series. They are big. They are heavy. And they are gold. The Type 1 double eagle was struck from 1850 through 1866 at which time the reverse was changed to include the motto "In God We Trust."

The Type 1 double eagle spanned some of the most memorable years in our nation's history. It owes its existence to the California Gold Rush and it came to an end due to rising religious sentiment during the Civil War leading to the adding of the motto on the reverse.

The great rarity of the 1854-O Type 1 double eagle was established right from the start. Its low mintage of 3,250 is second in the series to the 1856-O which had 1,000 less. The 1854-O, along with the 1856-O, are the two major rarities of the series. Only 30-35 examples of this coin are believed to exist today.

Almost as if to confirm its great rarity, only one 1854-O was recovered from the thousands of double eagles, including many from the New Orleans mint, recovered from the S.S. Republic shipwreck. That coin is considered the finest known, was graded AU-58, and sold shortly after being recovered for over $600,000. There are no known uncirculated examples of this coin.

Designer: James B. Longacre
Weight: 33.436 grams
Diameter: approx. 34mm, reeded edge
Composition: 90% gold, 10% copper/silver