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What a double eagle is
A double eagle is a United States $20 gold coin — Liberty Head or Saint-Gaudens — with 0.9675 troy ounces of gold. “Double” means double the $10 eagle, not two heads.
A double eagle is a United States $20 gold coin.
The name is old mint language. The $10 coin was called an eagle. Twenty dollars was a double eagle. It is not a two-headed coin.
The metal
Each one contains 0.9675 troy ounces of fine gold in a 90% gold alloy. That is why a shop does not treat it as a full modern ounce. They use 0.9675, then add any collector premium. What a troy ounce is. Pre-33 vs modern Eagles.
The two looks
Liberty Head coins run 1849–1907. Saint-Gaudens coins run 1907–1933. Common dates in ordinary circulated grades are mostly a gold bid plus a little. Better dates and better original surfaces leave melt and become a collector conversation.
The 1933 Saint-Gaudens double eagle is a famous legal story. It is not the coin in a cigar box. 1933 context.
What ruins the premium
Cleaning, mounting as jewelry, holes, and fake holders. Don’t clean. Fake slabs. Details grades.
If you have a handful, we weigh, we authenticate, we look at dates, then we decide if this is melt-plus or a coin someone will hunt.
Continue in the coin and money library. Related visitor guides: for shop visitors.
Why the bird is there, and small eagle vs heraldic: Why US coins have eagles.
The rest of the gold type set: US gold coin types.
Extra pad history for the double eagle
A double eagle is a United States $20 gold coin. The name is old mint language. The $10 coin was called an eagle. Twenty dollars was a double eagle. It is not a two-headed coin. Each one contains 0.9675 troy ounces of fine gold in a 90% gold alloy. That is why a shop does not treat it as a full modern ounce. They use 0.9675, then add any collector premium.
Liberty Head coins run 1849–1907. Saint-Gaudens coins run 1907–1933. Common dates in ordinary circulated grades are mostly a gold bid plus a little. Better dates and better original surfaces leave melt. The 1933 Saint-Gaudens is a famous legal story. It is not the coin in a cigar box. 1933 context.
What the shop does with a handful
We weigh, we authenticate, we look at dates, then we decide if this is melt-plus or a coin someone will hunt. Cleaning, mounting as jewelry, holes, and fake holders ruin the premium. Don’t clean. Fake slabs. Details grades. Pre-33 vs modern Eagles: old gold is collectible plus melt; modern Eagles are bullion.
Why the bird is there, and small eagle vs heraldic, is a design page. Here the number that matters is 0.9675 plus the date. Do not mix a Saint with a 2026 Eagle and argue the same dollars per coin. Different specs. Different markets.
People also ask
Is a double eagle two ounces? No. It is a $20 coin with 0.9675 ounces of gold.
Are all Saints rare? No. Common dates are common.
Should I slab a circulated $20? Only if date and surfaces justify the fee. When to slab.
Is a jewelry $20 still gold? Yes. The mount usually kills the collector premium.