1857-S $20 Liberty Head Double Eagle, 20A variety PCGS MS63 (CAC) Ex.SS Central America

This specimen displays the attractive mint luster typical to shipwreck salvaged coins, with surfaces that remain undiminished and unaltered by immersion in salt water for 130 years. Please take a careful look at the images provided of this attractive coin. This is the popular 20A (Spiked Shield) variety. Of those coins retrieved from the SS Central America, PCGS has graded 345 of the 20A variety as MS63 with 1,861 finer. Collectors Universe prices this variety at $10,000.00 in MS63. In CAC, there are 37 in MS63 with 450 finer. CAC gives the 20A Spiked Shield variety a price of $9,450.00 in MS63.

Haunting image of a young woman retrieved from the SS Central America. Photo: Wikimedia Commons.

The example offered by AUCM was preserved in extraordinary condition. That is not surprising, considering that the 1857-S double eagle did not have the opportunity to circulate in commerce. That is because the S.S. Central America sunk in 1857, the year this issue was produced at the San Francisco Mint.

Some may wonder how a coin, such as the current offering, could be so well preserved after sitting at the bottom of the ocean for a good 130 years. The vessel landed under 8,000 feet of water: a dark, freezing, and unwelcoming place where there was no current or disturbance whatsoever. Additionally, gold is a stable metal and contact with salt water has little effect. Even more, and most importantly, the vast majority of the coins retrieved from the ship were packed in wooden crates that were tightly stacked, giving them even more protection from the elements.