No price bump for Saddle Ridge Coronet gold $20?

By Steve Roach

Published: Nov 10, 2016, 5 AM

This 1889-S Coronet $20 double eagle from the Saddle Ridge Hoard graded MS-64+ by NGC sold for $8,225 at one of this summer’s ANA auctions.

Original images courtesy of Heritage Auctions

A look at both sides of the 1889-S Coronet $20 double eagle from the Saddle Ridge Hoard graded MS-64+ by NGC that sold for $8,225 at one of this summer’s ANA auctions.

Images courtesy of Heritage Auctions

2016 has been a relatively good year for gold.

It started the year at $1,072.70 an ounce and then enjoyed steady gains this summer when it routinely hit the $1,350 level. It has moved down from those levels while people wait for the outcome of the presidential election and any potential market response that may impact precious metal prices.

Despite this uncertainty, collectors still love gold coins, especially rare and unusual ones.

Here is one of three from recent sales that caught my eye.

The Lot:

1889-S Coronet $20 double eagle from the Saddle Ridge Hoard, MS-64+

The Price:

$8,225

The Story:

The Saddle Ridge Hoard made big news in February 2014 when Kagin’s Inc. in Tiburon, Calif., announced the discovery of 1,427 19th century gold coins in eight metal canisters valued at more than $10 million. Most of the coins in the Saddle Ridge Hoard were Coronet $20 double eagles struck at the San Francisco Mint in the late 19th century. The coins were initially certified by PCGS and more than a dozen coins in the hoard were (or tied with) the finest PCGS certified examples.

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The hoard included 422 1889-S Coronet double eagles, including two that PCGS graded MS-65+. This 1889-S Coronet double eagle graded MS-64+ by Numismatic Guaranty Corp., but with the Saddle Ridge Hoard provenance, sold for $8,225 at Heritage’s August 2016 American Numismatic Association auction in Anaheim, Calif. The price realized was in line with prices that comparable non-Saddle Ridge examples had brought in recent transactions.

Keep reading this gold-rarity-themed Market Analysis:

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