By Charles Morgan and Hubert Walker for CoinWeek Notes …..
The American Silver Eagle is a one-ounce .999 fine silver bullion coin issued by the United States Mint. The coin is legal tender in the United States, with a face value of one dollar. It has been struck over the years in multiple versions, from the standard Uncirculated bullion coin produced for the precious metals investment market to collector versions with Burnished, Enhanced Uncirculated, Proof, Reverse Proof, and Enhanced Reverse Proof finishes. From 1986 to 2020, the American Silver Eagle featured a reprised version of Adolph A. Weinman’s Walking Liberty design on the obverse and John M. Mercanti’s Heraldic Eagle design on the reverse.
American Silver Eagle Origins
Attempts to get the United States Mint into the growing precious metals coin business had failed several times before Idaho Senator James McClure (R) successfully worked out a deal to introduce his amendment to the Statue of Liberty-Ellis Island Commemorative Coin Act in 1985.
As it pertained to the Silver Eagle, the law authorized the Mint to use silver sourced from the Defense National Stockpile, to strike bullion coins for the investor market. The legislation intended to deplete the government’s stockpile over several years by selling it as a legal tender bullion coin at a slight premium over the prevailing spot price. The legislation also provided for Proof versions made for the collector market.
A first strike ceremony for the American Silver Eagle was held at the San Francisco Mint on October 29, 1986. Treasury Secretary James A. Baker, III struck the first three coins using the Bliss coinage press. Mint Director Donna Pope struck the fourth coin. Senator James McClure struck the fifth example. Others striking coins at that event were former Mint Director Eva Adams; Robert Clark, Comptroller of the Currency; United States Mint Chief Engraver Elizabeth Jones; American Numismatic Association (ANA) President Florence Schook; and O.L. Wallis, President of the California State Numismatic Association.
The American Silver Eagle bullion coin went on sale on September 1, 1986. Bulk distributors could buy the coin at launch for $1 over spot.
Congress Continues the American Silver Eagle Program
The program proved so popular that the Defense National Stockpile was reaching depletion by the end of the year 2000. To ensure its continuation, Senator Harry Reid (D) of Nevada introduced Senate Bill 2594, “The Support the American Eagle Silver Bullion Program Act”, which would allow the Secretary of the Treasury to purchase silver on the open market once America’s stores were exhausted. Similar legislation passed the House of Representatives and was signed into law by President George W. Bush on July 23, 2002, as 116 Statute 736 of Public Law 107-201.
Collecting the American Silver Eagle
A large silver coin with an attractive design, the American Silver Eagle is widely collected and heavily promoted by coin dealers, marketing companies, and the United States Mint. More than 650 million pieces were produced between 1986 and 2020, the majority being bullion coins struck for the investor market.
As a collectible, the American Silver Eagle trades at multiple tiers.
In its raw form, the coin is collected by date, finish, and mintmark. The minimum value of a raw Silver Eagle is notionally $1, but the spot price of silver has never dropped that low over the entire span of the coin’s production to date, and that is what most coin dealers use as a baseline to value their inventory. Earlier-dated pieces struck 1986-1999 trade for higher prices than coins struck in 2000 or later because of perceived scarcity. Outside of the 1995-W American Silver Eagle Proof (which was sold as part of an expensive gold and silver anniversary set), the 2019-W and 2019-S Enhanced Reverse Proofs, and the 2020-W 75th Anniversary of World War II Privy Mark coins, no American Silver Eagle issue has a mintage under 100,000.
Silver Eagles are also marketed and collected as certified coins, with CAC, NGC, and PCGS being the leading market-accepted grading services. Typically, these services grade American Silver Eagle coins through their modern or bulk service tier. After authenticating the coin’s genuineness, the companies assign a grade based on each service’s interpretation of the Sheldon 70-point grading scale. NGC also offers a parallel grading service called NGCX, which grades on a 10-point scale similar to the kind used on trading cards and comic books.
The United States Mint’s production quality is among the highest of any Mint operating in the world and the typical American Silver Eagle, as found in its original government packaging, may appear “perfect” to the casual collector but have minute issues that can be identified by a trained professional. The two most common certified grades for American Silver Eagles are MS69 and MS70. Heavily toned examples, attractive or not, will often grade MS68.
Date-by-Date Analysis by CoinWeek Notes
- 1986 American Silver Eagle, Bullion Strike
- 1986-S American Silver Eagle, Proof
- 1987 American Silver Eagle, Bullion Strike
- 1987-S American Silver Eagle, Proof
- 1988 American Silver Eagle, Bullion Strike
- 1988-S American Silver Eagle, Proof
- 1989 American Silver Eagle, Bullion Strike
- 1989-S American Silver Eagle, Proof
- 1990 American Silver Eagle, Bullion Strike
- 1990-S American Silver Eagle, Proof
- 1991 American Silver Eagle, Bullion Strike
- 1991-S American Silver Eagle, Proof
- 1992 American Silver Eagle, Bullion Strike
- 1992-S American Silver Eagle, Proof
- 1993 American Silver Eagle, Bullion Strike
- 1993-P American Silver Eagle, Proof
- 1994 American Silver Eagle, Bullion Strike
- 1994-P American Silver Eagle, Proof
- 1995 American Silver Eagle, Bullion Strike
- 1995-P American Silver Eagle, Proof
- 1995-W American Silver Eagle, Proof
- 1996 American Silver Eagle, Bullion Strike
- 1996-P American Silver Eagle, Proof
- 1997 American Silver Eagle, Bullion Strike
- 1997-P American Silver Eagle, Proof
- 1998 American Silver Eagle, Bullion Strike
- 1998-P American Silver Eagle, Proof
- 1999 American Silver Eagle, Bullion Strike
- 1999-P American Silver Eagle, Proof
- 2000 American Silver Eagle, Bullion Strike
- 2000-P American Silver Eagle, Proof
- 2001 American Silver Eagle, Bullion Strike
- 2001-W American Silver Eagle, Proof
- 2002 American Silver Eagle, Bullion Strike
- 2002-W American Silver Eagle, Proof
- 2003 American Silver Eagle, Bullion Strike
- 2003-W American Silver Eagle, Proof
- 2004 American Silver Eagle, Bullion Strike
- 2004-W American Silver Eagle, Proof
- 2005 American Silver Eagle
- 2005-W American Silver Eagle, Proof
- 2006 American Silver Eagle, Bullion Striker
- 2006-W American Silver Eagle, Proof
- 2006-W American Silver Eagle, Burnished
- 2006-P American Silver Eagle, Reverse Proof
- 2007 American Silver Eagle, Bullion Strike
- 2007-W American Silver Eagle, Burnished
- 2007-W American Silver Eagle, Proof
- 2008 American Silver Eagle, Bullion Strike
- 2008-W American Silver Eagle, Burnished
- 2008-W American Silver Eagle, Proof
- 2009 American Silver Eagle, Bullion Strike
- 2010 American Silver Eagle, Bullion Strike
- 2010-W American Silver Eagle, Proof
- 2011 American Silver Eagle, Bullion Strike
- 2011-P American Silver Eagle, Reverse Proof
- 2011-S American Silver Eagle, Burnished
- 2011-W American Silver Eagle, Burnished
- 2011-W American Silver Eagle, Proof
- 2012 American Silver Eagle, Bullion Strike
- 2012-S American Silver Eagle, Proof
- 2012-S American Silver Eagle, Reverse Proof
- 2012-W American Silver Eagle, Burnished
- 2012-W American Silver Eagle, Proof
- 2013 American Silver Eagle, Bullion Strike
- 2013-W American Silver Eagle, Burnished
- 2013-W American Silver Eagle, Enhanced
- 2013-W American Silver Eagle, Reverse Proof
- 2013-W American Silver Eagle, Proof
- 2014 American Silver Eagle, Bullion Strike
- 2014-W American Silver Eagle, Burnished
- 2014-W American Silver Eagle, Proof
- 2015 American Silver Eagle, Bullion Strike
- 2015-W American Silver Eagle, Burnished
- 2015-W American Silver Eagle, Proof
- 2016 American Silver Eagle, Bullion Strike
- 2016-W American Silver Eagle, Burnished
- 2016-W American Silver Eagle, Proof
- 2017 American Silver Eagle, Bullion Strike
- 2017-S American Silver Eagle, Proof
- 2017-W American Silver Eagle, Burnished
- 2017-W American Silver Eagle, Proof
- 2018 American Silver Eagle, Bullion Strike
- 2018-S American Silver Eagle, Proof
- 2018-W American Silver Eagle, Burnished
- 2018-W American Silver Eagle, Proof
- 2019 American Silver Eagle, Bullion Strike
- 2019-S American Silver Eagle, Enhanced Reverse Proof
- 2019-S American Silver Eagle, Proof
- 2019-W American Silver Eagle, Burnished
- 2019-W American Silver Eagle, Enhanced Reverse Proof
- 2019-W American Silver Eagle, Proof
- 2020 American Silver Eagle, Bullion Strike
- 2020-S American Silver Eagle, Proof
- 2020-W American Silver Eagle, Burnished
- 2020-W American Silver Eagle, Proof
American Silver Eagle, Heraldic Eagle Collector Sets
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Exclusive CoinWeek American Silver Eagle Coverage
With the release of the low-mintage 2019-S Enhanced Reverse Proof American Silver Eagle near the end of the Type 1 Heraldic Eagle’s run, numismatist Chris Bulfinch looks at a handful of other key dates in the series.
After the Mint announced that the Silver Eagle would receive a new reverse design in 2021, CoinWeek contributor Joshua McMorrow-Hernandez wrote about the series and what the future may hold.
- American Silver Eagle Year-End Market Wrap-Up: The 1990s
- A Perfect Score – Coins Graded Mint State-70
CoinWeek’s Charles Morgan and Hubert Walker focus on the market for Heraldic Eagle American Silver Eagles from the 1990s and Charles discusses what a “perfect” grade means for coins.
CoinWeek Editor Charles Morgan sits down to talk about the American Silver Eagle series and how the market for America’s most popular bullion coin has changed since 2014.
Professional numismatist Jack McNamara of Rare Collectibles TV writes for CoinWeek about what he considers the most underrated issues in the series.
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Design
Obverse:
Artist Adolph A. Weinman’s figure of Lady Liberty is depicted mid-stride. She is seen as a full-body figure, dressed in a flowing gown, and draped with a large billowing American flag. She holds laurel and oak branches in her left hand that symbolize the civil and military glories of America, respectively. As Liberty strides confidently towards the rising sun, she reaches out and presents a welcoming and open hand. So large is Lady Liberty that she is superimposed over the obverse legend LIBERTY ringing the obverse – in fact, she obscures half of the “BE” and almost the entire “R”. Above Liberty’s outstretched rear foot is the motto IN GOD WE TRUST, and below her is the date.
The design bears a notable resemblance to sculptor Oscar Roty’s The Sower, a common image on French coins. Weinman’s Liberty Walking design quickly became one of America’s most iconic numismatic images. It would be used with minor modifications on the American Silver Eagle bullion coin starting in 1986. If present, mintmarks are located below the branch.
Reverse:
The Heraldic Eagle of United States Mint Chief Engraver John M. Mercanti is positioned at the center. Clutched in its beak is a ribbon bearing the motto E PLURIBUS UNUM. Above its head is a constellation of 13 stars configured in an upside-down pyramid formation. The legend UNITED STATES OF AMERICA wraps around the top of the design and the fineness and denomination 1 OZ. FINE SILVER. ONE DOLLAR is at the bottom.
Edge:
The edge of the Heraldic Eagle, American Silver Eagle bullion coin is reeded.
Coin Specifications
| American Silver Eagle, Heraldic Eagle | |
| Years of Issue: | 1986-2021 |
| Mintage (Bullion): | High: 47,000,000 (2015); Low: (3,603,386). |
| Mintage (Proof): | High: 1,446,778 (1986-S); Low: 29,909 (2019-S Enhanced Reverse Proof). |
| Alloy: | .999 silver |
| Weight: | 31.1 g |
| Diameter: | 40.6 mm |
| Edge: | Reeded |
| OBV Designer: | Adolph A. Weinman |
| REV Designer: | John M. Mercanti |
