Saint Guadens Coin

Numismaster.com recently had a great article about Saint-Gaudens prices.  According to Numismaster, the price of $20 St. Gaudens have fallen over $100 in the last few weeks.

This article claims that this $100 price drop is due to the gains of the stock market of the past couple of weeks.  I really have my doubts that the price of $20 Saint-Gaudens coins is that tied to the United States stock market.

I belive that $20 Saint-Gaudens values are more tied to the price of gold and I believe that the $100 price decrease in these gold coins is directly tied to the falling price of gold.

$20 Saint-Gaudens gold coins are some of the most common coins that gold buyers turn to when buying gold.  The common date gold St. Gaudens derive their price almost directly to the price of gold.  But, the beta on these gold coins is greater than one.  If the price of gold goes up 10%, the price of St. Gaudens goes up by more.  There reverse is similarly true when the price of gold decreases.

The $20 Saint-Gaudens Values will always be an important part of the US coin market.  Following these $20 Saint-Gaudens Values gives great insight into the direction of US coin prices and gold coin prices.

But, coin collectors around the world love to collect gold bullion coins for their numismatic interest. I definitely think that American Eagles Coins are beautiful, but I am not sure that they are going to go up in value too much. I believe that these gold bullion coins value will always be primarily derived from the value of the gold comprising such coins.

Here is what one CoinTalk reader said,

The purist answer:

My favourite bullion coin is whichever is cheapest at the time of purchase. In the UK, where silver attracts purchase tax, these are usually krugerrands, Austrian 100 corona pieces and Mexican 50 peso pieces. In the US, I understand, the same three are good value as are junk silver and silver rounds.

It is possible to remain reasonably purist and buy coins which have a reasonable hope of being more valuable on resale. In the UK, this means bullion grade, early 20th century sovereigns; in the US, I understand, this means US gold eagles.

In the UK, gold bars are harder to sell than gold coins. In the US, I understand there is a more active market, so a truly purist US bullion investor might not want coins at all.

The aesthetic answer:

Krugerrands, though good value and honestly made, are not pretty. Canadian Maples and Austrian Philharmonikers are more attractive but don’t move me. I rather like both US Eagles and UK Britannias–quite as much as I like Chinese Pandas. And the 2009 US Double Eagle does look as though it will be most attractive.

But the bullion coins I find the most pleasure in owning are the Australian Kangaroos and Kookaburras. The 2oz sizes of these are particularly striking.

I couldn’t agree more with this readers first statement.  If you want to invest in gold bullion coins, buy the cheapest gold bullion coins you can find.  Remember that the reason why you are buying gold bullion is to own gold.  That is you are trying to convert your paper currency into a hard asset.  If doesn’t really matter what the gold looks like as long as it is liquid.

Having said that, I also like to collect gold bullion coins.  But, when I am buying gold bullion coins as part of a collection, my goals are different.  I am not looking to convert paper money into gold for the sake of owning gold.  Instead, I want to add it to my coin collection.  If I had to pick one gold bullion coin as my favorite, I would pick the 2006 American Buffalo Gold coin.  That is an absolutely beautiful coin.

What is your favorite gold bullion coins?

Mint News Blog provides an update on the Ultra High Relief Double Eagles.  It seems like the Ultra High Relief Double Eagle shipments are delayed.  Susan Headley states that the sales for the 2009 Ultra High Relief Double Eagles are starting very strong.  If you would like to read more about this coin, here is my article – 2009 Ultra High Relief Double Eagle Gold Coin.

Coinlink has a great article about the evolving prooflike gold coinage market.  Find out about how NGC has been designating some gold coins as being prooflike. It is fascinating to see a new coin collecting market take form.  Do you think more people are going to collecting Deep Mirror Prooflike Liberty Head Double Eagles?

Everyone is fascinated with following the US Mint production numbers.  Numismatic News has written a story about 2008 Mint Production Totals being down.  In fact, production fell by 29.8%.

The price of gold is still on its rollercoaster ride.  CoinNews.net has good article explaining Monday’s price of gold decline.

Obama mania continues to monopolize television shopping channels, advertisements and late night infomercials.  Susan Headley has a great piece about President Obama’s lawyers looking for ways to stop people from selling products with his name and face.  While I would love to see these merchants stopped from selling these Obama coins as great investment vehicles, I think that it would be terrible for the U.S. Government to attack this issue by arguing that these merchants can’t use Obama’s likeness.  Instead, if the Federal Trade Commission can make a case for fraud do that.  But, I think that is a very tough case to prove.

The Coin Collector’s Blog has an article about the Top 10 Historical Quarter Designs.  I love these historical designs.  In fact my Top 10 State Quarters includes a lot of these historical designs.  The history associated with these designs is my favorite thing about the US State Quarter Program.

Why Do People Buy Gold Coins?

People buy gold coins for various reasons, but here are the best reasons to buy gold coins:

• Gold coins are liquid assets that can be resold quickly.
• Gold coins are not subject to foreign exchange rate fluctuations.  Gold owned in the United States is worth the same as gold owned in India.
• Investing in gold bullion acts as a hedge against inflation.  If the value of the U.S. dollar decreases, that means that it would cost more U.S. dollars to buy the same amount of gold.  Therefore, if you owned gold bullion coins, those coins would be worth more U.S. dollars if the value of the U.S. dollar weakens.
• Because gold acts as a hedge against inflation and foreign exchange rate volatility, it also protects owners from political instability and it  s effects on the value of money.

What are gold bullion coins?

Gold bullion coins are gold coins that derive their value from their gold content and the price of gold.  Gold bullion coins do not derive their value from scarcity or condition.  People buy gold bullion for the price of gold, but as collectibles.  Unlike St. Gaudens Double Eagle gold coins, bullion coins are not rare.

Gold Bullion Coins From Around The World:

American Eagle Gold Coins

American Eagle Gold Coin

American Gold Eagles for Sale on Ebay

South African Krugerrand Gold Coins

Krugerrand Gold Coins

Krugerrand Gold Coins for Sale on Ebay

Canadian Maple Leaf Gold Coins

Canadian Maple Leaf Gold Coin

Canadian Maple Leaf Gold Coins for Sale on Ebay

Mexican Gold Coins

Gold Mexican 50 Pesos

Mexican 50 Pesos for sale on Ebay

China Panda Gold Coins

China Panda Gold Coins

If you are interested in reading more about China Panda gold coins, here is an article on collecting panda gold coins.

Panda gold coins on sale on Ebay

Australian Kangaroo Gold Coins

Kangaroo Gold Coins

Kangaroo gold coins on eBay

Russian Gold Coins

Russian Gold Coin

Russian gold coins on ebay

British Sovereign Gold Coins

British Sovereign Gold Coin

British sovereigns on sale on ebay

Austrian Philharmonica Gold Coins

Austrian Philharmonica Gold Coin

Philharmonica gold bullion coins on ebay

I hope that this buying gold bullion coins article provided you with a helpful primer on buying gold bullion and investing in gold coins.

The 2009 high relief double eagle price will initially be $1,189 plus shipping and handling.  This is a pretty high premium over the price of gold.  In fact, you can buy some beautiful 1907 $20 Saint-Gaudens right now on eBay for $1,000-$2,000.

So the question that I am asking myself is whether I would rather have a rare us coin or the 2009 UHR Double Eagle Gold Coin.

CoinNews.net has posted some pictures of the 2009 Double Eagle broachure that he received yesterday in the mail from the United State Mint.  The Mint is really pulling out all stops in marketing this coin to coin collectors.

2009 High Relief Double Eagle Gold Coin US Mint Brochure

The display box for this UHR gold coin is beautiful.  It is made out of mahogony.  In addition, to selling the coin and the display box, the United States Mint also provides a hard-bound book that discusses the history of the 1907 $20 Saint-Gaudens and the making of the 2009 High Relief Double Eagle Gold Coin.  Will you be buying this UHR gold coin today?

I don’t think that I will be buying one until the end of 2009 anyways, but I would like to hear people’s reactions to them.  I think that they are going to be huge sellers this year.

If you would like to read more, here is a great article about the UHR coin delay on the Mint News Blog.

Originally the US Mint only produced coins in the Philadelphia US Mint branch.  But, as the country’s borders moved westward, the US Mint needed more branches to keep up with demand for US coins.

The following is list of the US Mint branches and the mint marks found on the coins struck at that branch:

US Mint Branch	Mint Mark	Date US Coins Produced At Branch
Philadelphia	P	1793 to date
Devner	D	1906 to date
San Francisco	S	1854 to date
West Point, NY	W	1984 to date
Charlotte, NC	C	1838-1861
Daholega, GA	D	1838-1861
New Orleans	O	1838-1909
Carson City, NV	CC	1870-1893

Traditionally the Philadelphia Mint placed no mint mark on its coins. However, in 1979 and on the 1942-1945 nickels, the P mint mark has been used on Philadelphia minted coins.

I am fascinated by the Mint Branches history.  I want to read more about what was going on at the Charlotte and Daholega branches at the beginning of the Civil War.  The Charlotte and Daholega branches only minted US gold coins.  I bet that there was a lot of conflict about the gold sitting at these branches.

2009 Double Eagle Gold Coin will be available on January 22, 2009, but I have heard that its availability date has been pushed back.

2009 Ultra High Relief Double Eagle Gold Coin

The 2009 Double Eagle Gold Coin has my favorite coin design on it obverse.  I love the August Saint Gaudens design.  I don’t think a more beautiful coin design has ever been produced.

The 2009 Saint-Gaudens Coins are going to be re-creations of the St. Gaudens $20 Double Eagle gold coin.  These Saint Gaudens coins will weigh one ounce and be comprised of .9999 fine gold.  They are going to be struck on 24-karat gold planchets.

For anyone interested in investing in gold coins, I think that these Ultra High Relief Saint Gaudens coins will be a great collector’s item.  Will they go up in value not only based on the value of their gold, but also due to their uniqueness.

The original $20 Double Eagle gold coins are some of the most popular coins for investing in gold coins.  While I do not think that these new St. Gaudens will be in as limited quantity as the older Saint-Gaudens gold coins, I do think that they will be desired by coin collectors for years to come.

In addition to my Jefferson nickel type set collection, I am going to make sure that I buy one of these 2009 Ultra High Relief Double Eagle Gold Coins this year.