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Hard-to-Find Gem 1930-S Saint-Gaudens Double Eagle at GreatCollections

Hard-to-Find Gem 1930-S Saint-Gaudens Double Eagle at GreatCollections

By CoinWeek ….

A Gem 1930-S Saint-Gaudens Double Eagle graded MS65 by PCGS and given a green sticker by CAC is part of GreatCollections’ first February U.S. coin auction on Sunday, February 2. Only 50 to 100 examples of the 1930-S survive today, and only about one or two come to auction each year, making this a rare opportunity to obtain one of the scarcest Saint-Gaudens Double Eagles available.

The country was entering the dark days of the Great Depression in 1930, and with the demand for coinage consequently much lower, the United States Mint put the brakes on coin production. In the San Francisco Mint’s last year of double eagle production, the branch mint struck a scant 74,000 Saints for circulation, and over 99% of that was melted after the gold recall of 1933. The only collectible Saint-Gaudens Double Eagle with a lower mintage is the 1927-D.

Thankfully for collectors, the few available 1930-S double eagles come nice, with most certified examples falling in the mid-Mint State range. This is due to not only the quality of San Francisco’s work that year but also luck as the issue doesn’t seem to have been shipped off to European banks like many other latter-date double eagles. The finest 1930-S is believed to be the specimen that is part of the National Numismatic Collection at the Smithsonian in Washington, D.C.. It is estimated to be an MS68, one-and-a-half points above the finest coins at PCGS, which grade MS66+.

Before COVID, Gem Mint State pieces were selling for between $150,000 and $175,000. In recent years, they are selling for almost $300,000. The example currently being offered by GreatCollections is part of the Schwenk Family Collection of Saint-Gaudens Double Eagles by Date, and lists the Elite and Morehead collections as part of its pedigree on the label. At the time of publication, the highest of 65 bids is $205,000.

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To search through GreatCollection’s archive of over 600,000 certified coins and notes the company has sold, please visit the GreatCollections Auction Archives.

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The post Hard-to-Find Gem 1930-S Saint-Gaudens Double Eagle at GreatCollections appeared first on CoinWeek: Rare Coin, Currency, and Bullion News for Collectors.

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