Over time, the supply of these coins dwindled. The Flowing Hair Dollar is one of the most famous coins in US history.Īfter a few years of independence, George Washington and Alexander Hamilton believed it was time to introduce an official national mint.ġ60,295 Flowing Hair Dollars were circulated in 1794, and each coin was 90% silver. Last June, the coin was sold again via a private Sotheby’s auction for a monster $18.9 million. In 2002, Fenton sold the coin for $7.6 million. In exchange, the US would officially mint this specific Double Eagle coin, making it the only one legally allowed to trade. Now just 13 remain, 12 of which are illegal to sell, and the only legal one remaining is worth nearly $20 million.Īfter a prolonged legal battle, Fenton eventually reached an agreement with the US government he would sell the coin, and the government would receive half the proceeds. In the 1930s, this gold coin cost $20 (About $450 in today’s dollars). Why? Because the Double Eagle coin was still illegal to own in the United States. In 1996, he was arrested by the US Secret Service in a sting operation. It’s estimated that 20+ were salvaged, but to public knowledge, only 13 remain.Ī few decades later, one of the thirteen found its way to King Farouk of Egypt before being acquired by British coin dealer Stephen Fenton. Naturally, some savvy Americans ignored the decree and held onto their coins. As a result, officials were ordered to recall the 1933 Double Eagle and melt them down. The initial supply for this coin, (called the Double Eagle) was half a million coins.īut a few months after minting, President Franklin D Roosevelt executed Order #6102, banning the use of gold as currency. It was 1933, and Americans had been treated to a new form of currency - the $20 gold coin. The most expensive coins in the world 1933 Double Eagle Look at it fly! Over the past year, the average price of a rare coin has jumped by over $10,000. Mistakes: Coins with cosmetic errors are always popular and can be tremendously valuable (see below).Gold/silver coins: They maintain value thanks to what they’re made of.Condition & grading: A coin graded by the PCGS is more likely to sell than an identical ungraded coin.Mint run: Scarcity increases as fewer coins are released into circulation.Historical significance: Coins that provide insight into ancient societies, or represent major events in history.Other factors that influence a coin’s value: (In the old days, when governments wanted to remove coins from the market, they melted them all down) Instead, they are often old currencies, once in circulation, that slowly became lost to time. The most expensive coins aren’t typically minted as limited edition collector’s items. What makes a coin valuable?Īn easy rule of thumb is this: if the coin is currently in circulation, it’s probably not very valuable. The coin, known as the Double Leopard, was sold at auction for $185,000. There are just two of these rare coins known to exist, and by pure chance, Carter had uncovered one of them on a random field in Norfolk. So what? Well, the only known minting of this coin was 800 years ago, in 1343. I’m not exactly sure how Carter was able to recognize the coin’s leopard – I can barely even make out a tail!
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