1889 Liberty Head $10 Gold Eagle

1889 Liberty Head $10 gold eagles were made in relatively small numbers, with the Philadelphia issue standing out as the rarer of the two business-strike issues from that year. These gorgeous U.S. gold coins were designed by Christian Gobrecht, who was the third chief engraver of the United States Mint and oversaw the production of several new coin designs during his time as chief engraver; most popular among these are the Seated Liberty coins, which were chiefly made during a time period running from the late 1830s to the early 1890s.

1889 $10 gold eagle coins contain 0.4806 ounces of gold, but they are numismatic treasures and as such are worth much more than their simple bullion value. Here’s a rundown of the mintages and values of 1889 Liberty Head gold eagles:

• 1889, 4,485 minted; $1,539

• 1889-S 425,400; $1,474

• 1889 proof; $53,000

*Values are for coins grading Very Fine 20 unless otherwise noted.

What is glaringly evident here is that the Philadelphia issue, which was made to the tune of less than 4,500 pieces, is hardly more expensive than the 1889 San Francisco (S) mint issue. This illustrates the fact that there is roughly as much demand for either piece – a clear indication that the Liberty Head series doesn’t receive as much attention from traditional, year-by-year series collectors as, say, Lincoln cents or Morgan silver dollars. That means there are many undervalued scarce pieces, like 1889 (P) Liberty Head gold eagle coins, just waiting for buyers to snap them up.