Gold Calculations - Definitions, 18K, 14K, 12K, 10K

How Much Gold in US Gold Coins?



Gold has served as money - or established the value for currency - longer than any other material. The Coinage Act of 1792 established an independent money system where the dollar was the basic US monetary unit containing 24 3/4 gains of fine gold based on the world price at that time of $19.39 a troy ounce.

Congress changed the gold specification two more times - 1834 and 1837 - when the dollar price of gold was set at $20.67 an ounce. In 1934 US citizens were prohibited from holding 'monetary' gold and in 1961 this restriction was expanded to include any gold held abroad. As the price of gold increased, the use of gold for international trade was also restricted. The price of gold has continued to fluctuate and rise over the years, however, its attraction has never diminished. People still collect gold coins for their numismatic value as well as a hedge against inflation. But, how much gold is in a US gold coin? The chart below gives you the demonimations of the more common US gold coins starting with the Liberty Head gold dollar of 1849 taking you through the Double Eagle of 1922. We've also included the weight for each coin so its gold value can be calculated based on today's gold market value.

UNITED STATES GOLD COINS
Denomination
Gold Content
Coin Weight
(Grams)
Gold Dollar
 Liberty Head Type, 1849-1854
.900
1.672
Gold Dollar
 Indian Head Type
 Small Head, 1854-1856
.900
1.672
Gold Dollar
 Indian Head Type
 Large Head, 1856-1889
.900
1.672
Quarter Eagle ($2.50)
 Capped Bust to Right, 1796-1807
.9167
4.37
Quarter Eagle ($2.50)
 Capped Bust to Left, Large Size, 1808
.9167
4.37
Quarter Eagle ($2.50)
 Capped Head to Left, 1821-1834
.9167
4.37
Quarter Eagle ($2.50)
 Reduced Size 1829-1834
.9167
4.37
Quarter Eagle ($2.50)
 Classic Head, No Motto on Reverse, 1834-1839
.8992
4.18
Quarter Eagle ($2.50)
 Coronet Type, 1840-1907
.900
4.18
Quarter Eagle ($2.50)
 Indian Head Type 1908-1929
.900
4.18
Three Dollar Gold Pieces
 1854-1889
.900
5.015
Four Dollar Gold Pieces (Stella)
 1879-1880
.9176
6.998
Half Eagle ($5.00), 1795-1834
 
.9167
8.75
Half Eagle ($5.00), 1834-1838
 Classic Head Type
.8992
8.36
Half Eagle ($5.00), 1839-1908
 Coronet Type
.900
8.359
Half Eagle ($5.00), 1908-1929
 Indian Head Type
.900
8.359
Eagles ($10.00), 1795-1797
 Capped Bust Types
.9167
17.50
Eagles ($10.00), 1838-1866
 Coronet Types
.900
16.718
Eagles ($10.00), 1907-1933
 Indian Head Types
.900
16.718
Double Eagles ($20.00), 1850-1933
 
.900
33.436



We've taken the information for the gold content and weight of US gold coins from "The Official Red Book - A Guide Book of United States Coins" by R.S. Yeoman. This book is an authoritative guide to numismatic values for US coins.






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