The Official Saint-Gaudens Double Eagle Trivia Thread

Hey, I thought that instead of creating threads to talk about this-and-that on particular coins including Saints...why not have a thread where we ask questions concerning little-known facts about them ?

Here's the rules:

(1) Questions can be easy or difficult...to attract as wide an audience as possible.

(2) If you answer a trivia question, be honest and tell us if you knew it yourself or had to consult a source (i.e, internet, book, website, etc.).

(3) If you post a question, and nobody answers it in a day or two, come back and give "Last Chance" notification or the like and then post the answer. If a question generated lots of (wrong) answers, then you can post the correct answer that same day or even a few hours later if you want.

(4) Don't post a question if another one is still outstanding.

LET'S GET READY TO RUMBLE !!

 

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I'll go 1st.....

The 1913, 1915, and 1920 Saints all had this in common...until the 1915 recently left the group. What is it ?

Hint: It concerns grading population.

 

Had to double check the numbers but its that the 13 and 20 top pop is a 65. The 15 was the same but now has 1 66. The 20 only has 3 PCGS 65s as well making it the rarest of the three 65 and higher

 

Bingo....nice job, BB21. Congrats !

Yeah, I was surprised when I read it myself the other day. Up to a few years ago NONE had anything higher than MS65 by PCGS (and I think NGC, too). Now, the 1915 has I believe a PCGS and an NGC.

 

I havent seen pictures of it but my initial thought was that its the same coin. I would guess it was an NGC 66 that got crossed over

 

Multiple Choice, to make it easier and a bit more fun:

Hoards and previously uknown stashes can change populations. Which Saint-Gaudens coin from the list below has changed THE LEAST in its relative rarity/scarcity over the decades since WW II ?

(1) 1927-D

(2) 1907

(3) 1926-S

(4) 1921

(5) 1924-S

 

Any takers to Post #6 ?

Everybody must be watching the CFP Championship Game...

 

The answer to which rarity post-WW II has changed the LEAST over the decades is below....but first a bit of commentary from David Akers:

"...The standing of the 1921 in the overall hierarchy of Saint-Gaudens double eagle rarities has changed less over the last seven decades than any other regular issue in the series. During that time, some issues have dropped precipitously from their place at the top (1924-S and 1926-S for example) and others have risen substantially (1920-S, 1930-S and especially 1927-D) but the 1921 has always been recognized as being among the top four rarities of the series, both 70 years ago and today, at least with respect to value. The only thing that has changed is the other three coins with it at the top.

The 1921 is now considered to be the second most valuable regular issue Saint-Gaudens double eagle, surpassed only by the 1927-D whose extreme rarity was not recognized fully until the 1950s, at least in comparison to other issues in the series. Judged solely on its population rarity, meaning the total number of specimens known in all grades, the 1921 is certainly rare, but not exceptionally so, comparable overall to the 1920-S, but actually less rare than the 1930-S and 1932.

However, as a condition rarity it is the unrivaled "Queen" of the Saint-Gaudens series because the condition at which it becomes extremely rare and valuable is lower than for any other issue. Of course, every Saint is a condition rarity at a certain level. For example, any issue is (or would be if one existed) a great rarity in MS68 or 69. For some issues MS67 is the rarity point, for others it is MS65 or MS66. But no issue, not even the 1927-D, is as difficult to locate in MS64 or higher grades as the 1921. Only four or possibly five specimens are known in the MS65 and MS66 grades combined with nothing finer. Even in the MS63 and 64 grades, the 1921 is a major rarity with no more than 12-15 examples known of those two grades combined."

So the answer is #4....the 1921 Saint has remained the most stable.

 

2-parter.....this year has the highest production of Saint-Gaudens coins....and this year has the highest survival rate of coins we enjoy today.

Name the 2 years.....

 

Are these dates reversed?

 

No, the 1921 is rarer than the 1927-D in Gem Quality/MS-64 and above.

RWB's Saint-Gaudens book has the 1921 population in MS-65 and above at 4. NONE at MS67 or higher. The population in the MS63-64 group is 18, with most of those probably 63's.

The 1927-D has 1 in MS-67 or higher.....9 in MS65-66.......2 in MS63-64.

 

You know you can actually look up the real population data instead of always referencing an outdated book

 

Yup, but the book came out in 2018 so I figured it was (1) close enough to 2021 or 2022 and (2) that with the methodology RWB employs it might eliminate any double-counting.

However, the population at the graded levels we cited is so low it probably wasn't necessary in this case and going to the TPGs for population data was probably OK.

I'm always wary of just going to the websites and adding up the PCGS and NGC numbers.

 

Worker

 

Yeah what he said

 

27-d

 

Cheating

 

Considering the CAC most recent pricing....I would consider the dates are reversed.

 

1928 and 1924

 

We have a winner !! Congrats !!