CGG

Minted in a year when we lost our first President just two weeks shy of the new century, the 1799 Liberty Head is a piece of American history. Bright and lustrous yellow gold with deep olive highlights, only 35 to 40 pieces are known to exist in all grades.

There were many versions of the Heraldic Eagle minted between 1797 and 1804, with the early dates having variations in the number of stars, the rarest being in 1798. However, the highest graded version of the 1799 is valued at approximately $65,000.

The obverse is referred to as the Capped Bust motif and features Liberty wearing a turban with hair cascading down her neck. The word 'LIBERTY' arcs around the top, with eight stars on the left of Liberty and five on the right, representing the 13 original states. No denomination is shown.

The reverse of the coin displays an eagle which is modeled after the bird on the Great Seal of the United States. The Capped Bust motif remained on the obverse until 1804, when President Jefferson halted production of both gold eagles and silver dollars. The eagle would not return until 1838 on Gobrecht's Coronet Head Liberty.