By Charles Morgan and Hubert Walker for CoinWeek Notes …..
The American Silver Eagle debuted in 1986, and each year through 1994 the United States Mint released a bullion version for investors and a Proof version for collectors. In 1995, in addition to these two options, the Mint offered the series’ first anniversary set marking 10 years of American Eagles. That set contained four American Gold Eagles and a first-of-its-kind American Silver Eagle Proof struck at the West Point Mint.
Eleven years later, the Mint would celebrate another milestone by issuing three 20th Anniversary coin sets: the American Eagle 20th Anniversary Gold Set, the American Eagle 20th Anniversary Gold and Silver Set, and the American Eagle 20th Anniversary Silver Coin Set.
The gold set featured three one-ounce American Gold Eagles struck at the West Point Mint. The included coins were the 2006-W American Gold Eagle Burnished, the 2006-W American Gold Eagle Proof, and the 2006-W American Gold Eagle Reverse Proof. The Gold and Silver Set included the 2006-W American Gold Eagle Burnished and the 2006-W American Silver Eagle Burnished.
The American Eagle 20th Anniversary Silver Coin Set, the subject of this article, was comprised of three coins, one exclusive to the set. The coins were the 2006-W American Silver Eagle Burnished, the 2006-W American Silver Eagle Proof, and the 2006-P American Silver Eagle Reverse Proof.
The Burnished Silver Eagle was offered individually for $19.95, while the 2006-W Proof sold for $27.95. When the 20th Anniversary American Silver Eagle Set went on sale August 30, it sold for $100. More than half of that cost can be attributed to the exclusive 2006-P Reverse Proof.
Despite the high price, collector demand for the set was (predictably) high and the Silver Coin Set sold out within a few weeks of its release. On the secondary market, offers far exceeded the $100 issue price and surpassed $600 on eBay within the first year of release. These premiums have since dissipated, with ungraded sets selling for about $175 as of July 2024.
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Read CoinWeek’s In-Depth Analysis of the Coins from the 2006 American Silver Eagle 20th Anniversary Set
- 2006-W American Silver Eagle Burnished
- 2006-W American Silver Eagle Proof
- 2006-P American Silver Eagle Reverse Proof
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