American Gold Eagle

For the pre-1933 U.S. $10 gold coin, see Eagle (United States coin).

The American Gold Eagle is an official gold bullion coin of the United States. Authorized under the Gold Bullion Coin Act of 1985, it was first released by the United States Mint in 1986. Because the term "eagle" also is the official United States designation for the pre-1933 ten dollar gold coin, the weight of the bullion coin is typically used when describing American Gold Eagles (e.g., "1/2-ounce American Gold Eagle") to avoid confusion with the pre-1933 coins. This is particularly true with the 1/4-oz American Gold Eagle, which has a marked face value of ten dollars, the same as that of its predecessor.

Gold Eagle

United States
Value	5–50 U.S. dollars (face value); see specifications
Edge	Reeded
Composition	91.67% Au, 3% Ag, 5.33% Cu
Years of minting	1986–present (bullion) 1986–2008, 2010–present (proof) 2006–2008, 2011–present (uncirculated)
Obverse
Design	Liberty
Designer	Augustus Saint-Gaudens
Design date	1907
Design used	1986–present
Reverse
Design	Eagle soaring above a nest
Designer	Miley Busiek
Design date	1986
Design used	1986–2021
Design	Side profile of a Bald eagle
Designer	Jennie Norris
Design date	2021
Design used	2021–present

Details

Offered in 1/10 oz, 1/4 oz, 1/2 oz, and 1 oz denominations, these coins are guaranteed by the U.S. government to contain the stated amount of actual gold weight in troy ounces. By law, the gold must come from sources in the United States, alloyed with silver and copper to produce a more wear-resistant coin. In addition, sales of these and other specie coins from the US Mint are mandated, at least in part, to pay off the national debt.

Obverse of an 1/10 oz American Gold Eagle of 2017

The 22 kt gold alloy is an English standard traditionally referred to as "crown gold". Crown gold alloys had not been used in U.S. coins since 1834, with the gold content having dropped since 1837 to a standard of 0.900 fine for U.S. gold coins. For American Gold Eagles the gold fraction was increased again to .9167 or (22 karat). It is authorized by the United States Congress and is backed by the United States Mint for weight and content.

The obverse design features a rendition of Augustus Saint-Gaudens' full-length figure of Lady Liberty with flowing hair, holding a torch in her right hand and an olive branch in her left, with the Capitol building in the left background. The design is taken from the $20 Saint-Gaudens gold coin which was commissioned by Theodore Roosevelt to create coins like the ancient Greek and Roman coins.

From 1986 to 2021, the reverse design by sculptor Miley Busiek Frost (MB) featured a male eagle carrying an olive branch flying above a nest containing a female eagle and her eaglet. Frost says that her eagle design of the family of eagles is “a symbolic tribute to the American family, senior citizens and young people. Frost’s design drawing was sculpted for the reverse of the Gold Eagle by US Mint sculptor - engraver Sherl Joseph Winter (JW). Hence, on the reverse of these coins, the initials MB and JW are inscribed.

In 2021, the US Mint introduced a new reverse design on the American Gold Eagle featuring a close-up head portrait of an eagle. This design was created by US Mint artistic designer Jennie Norris (JN) and sculpted by US Mint medallic artist Renata Gordon (RG). Hence, Gold Eagles from 2021 onwards, show the initials JN and RG on each side of the eagle head design. Norris explains her design inspiration as follows: “The American Eagle is such a noble bird. I was hoping to capture the intensity of his stare through the close cropping. His gaze speaks of pride and wisdom passed down through generations of time.”

Specifications

Gold Eagles minted 1986–1991 are dated with Roman numerals. In 1992, the U.S. Mint switched to Arabic numerals for dating Gold Eagles.

The 1⁄10, 1⁄4, and 1⁄2 troy oz coins are identical in design to the 1 troy oz coin except for the markings on the reverse side that indicate the weight and face value of the coin (for example, 1 OZ. fine gold~50 dollars). The print on the smaller coins is, therefore, finer and less legible than on larger denominations.

Each of the four sizes contains 91.67% gold (22 karat), 3% silver, and 5.33% copper.

Denomination	1/10 troy oz	1/4 troy oz	1/2 troy oz	1 troy oz
Diameter	16.5 mm	22mm	27 mm	32.70 mm
Thickness	1.19 mm	1.83 mm	2.24 mm	2.87 mm
Gross weight	0.1091 troy oz (3.393 g)	0.2727 troy oz (8.483 g)	0.5454 troy oz (16.965 g)	1.0909 troy oz (33.931 g)
Face value	$5	$10	$25	$50

The 22k gold alloyed makeup of Gold Eagle coins stands in contrast to the 24k Gold Buffalo Coin, which is minted entirely from .9999 fine gold, and therefore weighs less (1 troy oz or 31.1035 grams gross).

Value

The market value of the coins is generally about equal to the market value of their gold content, not their face value. Like all commodities, this value fluctuates with market forces. The face values are proportional to the weights except for the 1/4 oz coin.

While their actual selling price (purchasing power) varies based on the spot price of gold, these coins carry face values of $5, $10, $25, and $50. These are their legal values, reflecting their issue and monetized value as "Gold Dollars", as opposed to standard bullion. They are legal tender for all debts public and private at their face values. These face values do not reflect their intrinsic value which is much greater and is mainly dictated by their weight and the price of precious metal. For example, on September 13, 2019, the U.S. Mint sold the 2016 one-ounce coin ($50 face value) at $1,510.00. Since the coins can be "paid" only at a disadvantage to the payer, they are generally held as collectibles rather than money, and for US taxpayers are subject to a high capital gains tax rate unless held in an individual retirement account.

In addition to standard bullion coins (sometimes referred to as "scruffies"), the United States Mint also produces proof and uncirculated versions for coin collectors. These coins carry the Mint's mark ("W") beneath the date, and are produced exclusively at the West Point Mint in West Point, New York (formerly the West Point Bullion Depository).

Mintages

American Gold Eagles immediately after being struck at the West Point Mint in 2011

These final audited mintages from the U.S. Mint include coins sold both individually and as part of multi-coin sets.

Annual bullion mintage

Year	$5 – 1⁄10 oz.	$10 – 1⁄4 oz.	$25 – 1⁄2 oz.	$50 – 1 oz.
1986	912,609	726,031	599,566	1,362,650
1987	580,266	269,255	131,255	1,045,500
1988	159,500	49,000	45,000	465,500
1989	264,790	81,789	44,829	415,790
1990	210,210	41,000	31,000	373,210
1991	165,200	36,100	24,100	243,100
1992	209,300	59,546	54,404	275,000
1993	210,709	71,864	73,324	480,192
1994	206,380	72,650	62,400	221,663
1995	223,025	83,752	53,474	200,636
1996	401,964	60,318	39,287	189,148
1997	528,515	108,805	79,605	664,508
1998	1,344,520	309,829	169,029	1,468,530
1999	2,750,338	564,232	263,013	1,505,026
2000	569,153	128,964	79,287	433,319
2001	269,147	71,280	48,047	143,605
2002	230,027	62,027	70,027	222,029
2003	245,029	74,029	79,029	416,032
2004	250,016	72,014	98,040	417,019
2005	300,043	72,015	80,023	356,555
2006	285,006	60,004	66,005	237,510
2007	190,010	34,004	47,002	140,016
2008	305,000	70,000	61,000	710,000
2009	270,000	110,000	110,000	1,493,000
2010	435,000	86,000	81,000	1,125,000
2011	350,000	80,000	70,000	857,000
2012	290,000	90,000	43,000	675,000
2013	555,000	114,500	57,000	758,500
2014	545,000	90,000	35,000	425,000
2015	980,000	158,000	75,000	626,500
2016	925,000	152,000	74,000	817,500
2017	395,000	64,000	37,000	228,000
2018	230,000	62,000	32,000	191,000
2019	195,000	38,000	30,000	108,000
2020	350,000	106,000	70,000	747,500
2021 Type-1	150,000	56,000	31,000	456,500
2021 Type-2	350,000	108,000	65,000	665,500
2022	575,000	140,000	75,000	850,000
2023	675,000	198,000	102,000	924,000

Annual proof mintage

During the series' inaugural year, the Mint only issued 1 troy oz proofs. It added 1⁄2 troy oz proofs in 1987 and since 1988 has issued proofs in all four denominations. In 2009, due to increased worldwide demand for precious metals that caused supply shortages and the Mint's legal obligations to produce bullion versions, proof and uncirculated versions of the Gold Eagle were not issued.

Year	$5 – 1⁄10 oz.	$10 – 1⁄4 oz.	$25 – 1⁄2 oz.	$50 – 1 oz.
1986	-	-	-	446,290
1987	-	-	143,398	147,498
1988	143,881	98,028	76,528	87,133
1989	84,647	54,170	44,798	54,570
1990	99,349	62,674	51,636	62,401
1991	70,334	50,839	53,125	50,411
1992	64,874	46,269	40,976	44,826
1993	58,649	46,464	43,819	34,369
1994	62,849	48,172	44,584	46,674
1995	62,667	47,526	45,388	46,368
1996	57,047	38,219	35,058	36,153
1997	34,977	29,805	26,344	32,999
1998	39,395	29,503	25,374	25,886
1999	48,428	34,417	30,427	31,427
2000	49,971	36,036	32,028	33,007
2001	37,530	25,613	23,240	24,555
2002	40,864	29,242	26,646	27,499
2003	40,027	30,292	28,270	28,344
2004	35,131	28,839	27,330	28,215
2005	49,265	37,207	34,311	35,246
2006	47,277	36,127	34,322	47,092
2007	58,553	46,189	44,025	51,810
2008	28,116	18,877	22,602	30,237
2009	-	-	-	-
2010	54,285	44,507	44,527	59,480
2011	42,697	28,782	26,781	48,306
2012	20,740	13,775	12,809	23,630
2013	21,742	12,789	12,718	24,710
2014	22,725	14,790	14,693	28,703
2015	26,769	15,775	15,820	32,652

Annual uncirculated mintage

In 2009, the allocation of blanks for the legally required production of bullion Gold Eagles affected both uncirculated coin and proof availability. This suspension continued into 2010 for the uncirculated version. When production resumed in 2011 (without the fractional denominations which had been discontinued in 2008), it was met with a weak collector response. The United States Mint provided audited and finalized annual production sales reports between 2006–2012. Afterwards, they published production sales numbers in the weekly cumulative sales reports. The mintage number is the Last Known Sale (LKS), which is the last sales figure published for that product before it was dropped from the sales report.

Year	$5 – 1⁄10 oz.	$10 – 1⁄4 oz.	$25 – 1⁄2 oz.	$50 – 1 oz.
2006-W	20,643	15,188	15,164	45,053
2007-W	22,501	12,766	11,455	18,066
2008-W	12,657	8,883	16,682	11,908
2009-W	-	-	-	-
2010-W	-	-	-	-
2011-W	-	-	-	8,729
2012-W	-	-	-	5,829
2013-W	-	-	-	7,293
2014-W	-	-	-	7,902
2015-W	-	-	-	6,533
2016-W	-	-	-	6,887
2017-W	-	-	-	5,800
2018-W	-	-	-	8,518
2019-W	-	-	-	6,365
2020-W	-	-	-	6,284

See also

• American Silver Eagle
• American Platinum Eagle
• American Palladium Eagle
• American Buffalo
• Australian Kangaroo
• Austrian Philharmonic
• British Britannia
• Canadian Maple Leaf
• Chinese Panda
• Eagle (U.S. coin)
• Gold as an investment
• Inflation hedge
• South African Krugerrand

External links

• Official website
• "Brochure from the U.S. Mint" (PDF). (714 KiB)