Recall Eliminated Many 1929-Dated Gold Coins
Some coins have importance and significance far beyond their value listings in the latest price guide. A Continental dollar dated 1776 might be considered such a coin. A Barber coin from San Francisco struck in the year of the great earthquake could well have a fascinating story to tell that is not reflected in its price. The list of special coins is a long one, for there are literally hundreds of coins that are special if you just happen to know their stories.
If you look up its price, the 1929 $2.50 gold piece would not seem like a terribly significant coin. The fact that it is gold makes it special in some minds, but its price would suggest that among gold coins of the United States it is not all that special.
Nor is it just price that suggests this. The 1929 quarter eagle had a mintage of 532,000. That was very ordinary. The production level of quarter eagles had been somewhat higher in the last quarter of the 19th century, but even among the Indian Head quarter eagles, the 1929 was basically average. Its price reflects this fact, as the 1929 quarter eagle price is linked to bullion value in grades lower than MS-63. In fact, an MS-60 is just $60 more than an AU-50, according to the latest Coin Market.
The logical question is, what is so special about the 1929 quarter eagle? Consider the date. In 1929 the stock market crashed, one of the most significant events surrounding the Great Depression. The crash marked the end of a period of prosperity and good times. Following the market crash, millionaires became beggars. Bread lines and hard times followed. If any single date on a coin could suggest the Great Depression, that date would be 1929 – especially if the coin is gold.
The association of gold coins with the Great Depression is a natural one. The U.S. government, in its efforts to pull the nation out of the Depression, recalled gold coins in 1933. There were exceptions for coins of historical or collectible value, although most would have considered a 1929 quarter eagle to be a coin not included in the exceptions. Government destruction of gold coins after they were recalled was significant. The limited records available show that some 15 percent of all quarter eagles minted were destroyed. In upper denominations, the destruction was even greater in terms of percentages. To official totals can be added private meltings by bullion speculators over the years. Thus, mintage totals can be misleading. A coin might have had a heavy mintage but also a heavy level of destruction, making it rare today. The 1929 quarter eagle is perhaps the only American gold type coin with that date that was not virtually wiped out in the recall. There were no 1929 eagles. There were more than 1 million 1929 double eagles produced, but very few got into circulation before 1933. Most were destroyed, with a 1929 double eagle today bringing $9,000 in VF. Much the same is true of the half eagle, for it, too, is priced at premium levels today. The message is clear. When it comes to the gold coins of 1929, the only one to avoid wholesale destruction was the quarter eagle. The other gold coins of that historic year probably never left Treasury vaults, with the exception of a few isolated examples.
If you are on a budget and want a historic gold coin from 1929, the quarter eagle is not a common coin at all, but something closer to a historic survivor reminiscent of the Great Depression and the gold recall that followed.