1932 $10 Indian Head Eagle PCGS MS63

This beauty is an affordable option for a numismatist seeking a type coin designed by Augustus Saint-Gaudens.  Jeff Garrett writes, "One can only wonder why such a large number of Eagles were coined at the absolute depth of the Depression. This is far and away the most common date in all grades and the standard of reference for the type coin to represent the Indian Head Eagle. Most show typical, strong Philadelphia luster and bold strikes." PCGS has graded 27,354 as MS63 with 18,265 finer. Collectors Universe gives this issue a price of $2,000.00 in MS63.

President Theodore Roosevelt, whose idea it was to place the Indian feather headdress upon Saint-Gaudens’ eagle coin. He is pictured here in 1885 as a Badlands hunter in a New York studio. Photo: Wikimedia Commons.

President Theodore Roosevelt initiated the change in U.S. coinage in collaboration with sculptor Augustus Saint-Gaudens. It was his passion. For two and a half years, Roosevelt found the time, even in the midst of political and diplomatic struggles, to be deeply involved in numismatics. It was with a critical eye that the President followed every step in Saint-Gaudens’ work, making suggestions throughout the process. He didn’t care that Treasury Secretary Shaw thought he was “a cracked-brained lunatic on the subject.”

The most obvious innovation from Roosevelt’s creative mind vis-à-vis the coins was in the case of the Liberty head on the $10 eagle. He requested that Saint-Gaudens replace the Phrygian cap in his original design with a traditional Indian feather headdress. The artist agreed wholeheartedly with the argument that “American Liberty should, if possible, have something distinctly American about her.”