American Gold Eagle Coins
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1-oz. American Gold Eagles are the world’s best-selling gold bullion coins. Their obverse (front) bears a re-design of Augustus Saint-Gaudens’ work that graces the iconic $20 Saint-Gaudens coins, which served as money in the United States from 1907 until called-in by President Franklin Roosevelt in 1933.
The reverse (back) of the American Gold Eagle does not resemble the reverse of the St-Gaudens $20 coin.
Legally, 1-oz Gold Eagles carry a legal tender values of $50; however, they sell for the value of their gold content plus a small premium. Back-dated Eagles can nearly always be bought at lower premiums than current year coins.
The 1/2-oz Gold Eagle has a face value of $25; the 1/4-oz $10 and the 1/10-oz $5. All four American Gold Eagle sizes carry the same design and are minted at the US Mint’s West Point facility.
Since their introduction in 1986, somewhere near 20 million 1-oz Gold Eagles have been sold. Because American Eagle Gold Bullion Coins (their official name) are the world’s best-selling gold bullion coins, they provide instant liquidity. Still, the Krugerrand is probably the world’s best known gold bullion coin.
American Gold Eagles are 22-karat gold, which means they contain 91.6% gold and 8.4% of a copper-silver alloy. Because Gold Eagles are 22-karat, many investors incorrectly believe that Gold Eagles have less than an ounce of gold. This is not so.
Gold Eagles contain exactly 1-oz ounce of gold
The 1-oz American Gold Eagle contain exactly one ounce of gold, and the smaller fractional-ounce Gold Eagles contain the gold content stamped on them. The copper-silver alloy causes the coins to weigh slightly more than their stated gold contents.
American Gold Eagles: legal tender gold coins
American Eagles are legal tender coins, but their face values are symbolic, as Gold Eagles do not sell at their legal tender values; Gold Eagles sell at prices that reflect the value of their gold content plus small premiums to cover the cost of manufacture.
American Gold Eagles: four sizes
The 1-oz Gold Eagle coins are $50 face value, the 1/2-oz coins $25, the 1/4-oz coins $10, and the 1/10-oz coins $5. One-ounce Gold Eagles come in tubes of twenty but can be bought in smaller quantities.
Gold Eagles minted 1986-1991 were dated with Roman numerals. In 1992, the U.S. Mint switched to Arabic numbers for dating Gold Eagles.
If you would like to discuss buying American Gold Eagles, or would like to discuss any aspect of investing in gold, call us at 800-528-1380. CMIGS takes calls 7:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. MST, Mondays through Thursdays, Fridays 7:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. MST.
Notes:
Precious metals are weighed in troy ounces, where one troy ounce equals 1.09711 regular (avoirdupois) ounces. Where ounce and ounces are used in this Web site, they mean troy ounce or ounces.
Buying Gold Eagles from CMI Gold & Silver Inc.
CMI Gold & Silver Inc. has no minimum order for American Gold Eagles.
Usually, payment by bank wire transfer is required for large orders and sometimes a deposit may be required before prices are locked in.
For still more details about buying and selling precious metals with us, See Doing Business With CMIGS. We also buy and sell platinum and palladium.
To speak with a broker, call 800-528-1380. We take calls 7:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. MST, Mondays through Thursdays, Fridays 7:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.
Coins with lower premiums than on Gold Eagles can be found on our Gold Specials Page. Fractional-ounce Gold Eagles are often posted on our Gold Specials Page. At times, even 1-oz. Gold Eagles are offered there.