Numismatic Navigator

Shining a Spotlight on Better Date Saints

Written by Brian Zweig | Mar 7, 2023 1:15:00 PM
Back by popular demand, is a limited selection of one of our favorite gold coins—the “Better Date” $20 Saint-Gaudens! Designed by famed sculptor Augustus Saint-Gaudens, $20 “Saints” are easily one of the most popular U.S. gold coins due to their stunning design. The “Better Date Saints” we have available today are innumerably more difficult to find than their common date counterparts.

The $20 Saints series contains both readily available dates and extremely rare coins. Mintages and survival rates vary tremendously year to year. In addition, one tiny mintmark can make an incredible difference in value.

For example, in 1927, the Philadelphia Mint issued an enormous number of $20 Saints. Their output was over 2.9 million coins. The same year, the Denver Mint struck 180,000 coins—all but a roll or two were melted. As a result, the 1927 $20 Saint is readily available and sells for $2,100 to $2,300 per coin in Uncirculated. The 1927-D, meanwhile, is a major rarity. One sold for just shy of $2 million in 2014!

The takeaway message is that dates and mintmarks absolutely matter when it comes to $20 Saints.
As a general rule, $20 Saints minted between 1910 and 1923 tend to be scarcer than the 1924 to 1928 Philadelphia issues. Firstly, the mintages are considerably lower. Their output levels were in the hundreds of thousands instead of the millions. Secondly, the later dates were more likely to be sent overseas, and therefore shielded from Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s 1933 Executive Order banning all ownership of gold.
Simply put, these better dates represent the most advantageous way to own $20 Saints. 

These beloved vintage U.S. gold coins are trading for a slim premium over the spot price of gold. The opportunity is bolstered further by acquiring rare dates for a tiny amount over the generic price. 


These rare issues offer you three ways to win:
  1. A rise in the price of gold - When gold runs upward, vintage U.S. gold coins appreciate commensurately. In fact, they often amplify the appreciation, which leads us to the next point.
  2. Numismatic premium expansion - Sometimes pre-1933 U.S. gold premiums fluctuate independently of the spot price. On numerous occasions, even when spot has remained flat, vintage U.S. gold coins have advanced in value thanks to increased demand. In addition, when gold experiences a dramatic run, vintage gold coins can amplify the run-up in price. For instance, in 2009 when the gold spot price spiked, while the gold spot price increased by $300 an ounce, MS64 $20 Saints jumped by $500.
  3. Increased interest in collecting $20 Saints by date - This phenomenon would have a powerful positive effect on these rarer dates, as collectors would quickly discover how rare they are. With so few pieces available on the market, renewed interest in the $20 Saint-Gaudens series would have a tremendous effect on these tougher to acquire issues.
The only downside to these underappreciated dates: there aren’t enough of them to go around. We wish we could round up hundreds of these coins, but they’re not easy to find.
 
Today’s Offer
When we’ve had a selection of “Better Date Saints” available in the past, they were incredibly popular among our readers. Demand for these coins was so high, we still had requests for them even after selling out! 

Act now to claim a better date Saint-Gaudens from our extremely limited selection. We have various dates and grades available….

1. 1908 NM MS66 PCGS for $3,499
2. 1910 MS62 PCGS for $2,349
3. 1910-D MS63 PCGS for $2,399
4. 1910-S MS62 NGC for $2,349
5. 1911-S MS62 NGC for $2,399
6. 1914-D MS63 NGC for $2,399
7. 1914-S MS63 NGC for $2,399
8. 1914-S MS63 PCGS for $2,399
9. 1914-S MS62 CAC PCGS for $2,429
10. 1915-S MS63 NGC for $2,599
11. 1920 MS62 NGC for $2,449
12. 1923-D MS63 NGC for $2,699                                   

All of the coins listed about come slabbed and graded by NGC or PCGS. In addition to the better date $20 Saints, we also have generic MS64 $20 Saints available. Call for pricing.

Call us at 800-831-0007 or email infoasi@assetstrategies.com to claim your $20 Saint-Gaudens Double Eagles today!
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