1884 Liberty Head Double Eagle

1884 Liberty Head double eagles are considerably scarce in general, as less than 1 million were made and many were later melted for their gold content. As was case in 1883, the Philadelphia mint made only proof specimens of the $20 gold coin in 1884, leaving the Carson City and San Francisco mints to produce business strikes. As gold coins, especially double eagles, mainly circulated in the West, it made sense that the San Francisco and Carson City mints handled the bulk of the striking efforts for Liberty Head double eagles.

Here is a look at the mintages and values of 1884 double eagle gold coins:

• 1884 (proof only), 71; $225,000

• 1884-CC, 81,139; $4,137

• 1884-S, 916,000; $2,936

*Values are for coins in a grade of Extremely Fine 40 unless otherwise specified.

1884 $20 double eagle gold coins contain 0.9613 ounces of gold, weigh 33.44 grams, and measure 34 millimeters wide. The $20 gold coin’s relatively heavy weight and broad diameter are two appealing factors for numismatists and coin collectors today. The historical value of the double eagle, which was first minted in 1849 during the height of the Gold Rush, is another important reason that double eagles remain perennially popular.