LOT Old Heritage Auctions  /  2008 Jan. FUN Signature Coin Auction #454  / 

3405

1931 $20 MS62 PCGS

Currency:USD Category:Coins & Paper Money / US Coins Start Price:35,000.00 USD Estimated At:1.00 - 1,000,000.00 USD
1931 $20 MS62 PCGS
<B>1931 $20 MS62 PCGS.</B></I> Many numismatic scholars have written about the apparent folly of the government's extensive gold mintages in the late 1920s and early 1930s. Taken out of context, the numbers seem absurd; why should Philadelphia have struck over 2.9 million double eagles in 1931, for example, only to have most of them melted two years later? At the time, however, few perceived the long-term nature of what later historians would term the Great Depression.<BR> Indeed, Herbert Hoover acted swiftly to counteract some of the effects of the worsening economy, and by early 1930, there were a number of promising signs. From documents archived in John Woolley and Gerhard Peters' <I>The American Presidency Project</B></I> and stored on the University of California - Santa Barbara Web side, Hoover related in a January 21, 1930 news conference, "The Department of Labor reports this morning that for the first time since the stock exchange crash the tide of employment is changed in the right direction--shows a very distinct increase in employment all over the country during the past 10 days."<BR> If the economy had turned around and international commerce experienced a resurgence, the over 2.9 million double eagles struck at Philadelphia in 1931 would have entered banking channels. As it turned out, both Hoover and the nation experienced declining fortunes, and the elections of 1932 brought Franklin Delano Roosevelt to the presidency. The actions of the new Chief Executive brought about the mass melting that has left numerous paradoxes in the final years of America's non-commemorative gold coinage.<BR> The peach-inflected apricot-gold surfaces of this enticing survivor offer excellent luster, and the overall detail is crisp. The obverse is surprisingly mark-free for the grade assigned, though the reverse shows a number of light to moderate abrasions. Still, this is a highly desirable late-date Saint-Gaudens double eagle that displays beautifully. It represents an excellent opportunity for the interested collector.<BR><I>From The Chicago Collection of Saints.</B></I><BR><BR><B>Coin Engraver:</B> Augustus Saint-Gaudens<BR><BR><b>Shipping:</b> Coins & Currency (<a target="_blank" href="http://www.heritageauctions.com/common/shipping.php">view shipping information</a>)
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