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About the coins

The year 2001 marks the first time since 1997 that a Thomas D. Rogers design appeared on the reverse of the Platinum Eagle Proofs. Rogers, whose classic 1997 design had dressed the business strike Platinum Eagle reverses every single year, crafted an exquisite Arizona desert scene for the 2001 Proof reverses to celebrate America’s southwestern desert landscapes for this fourth installment in the “Vistas of Liberty” series.

Thomas D. Rogers’ design for the 2001 Platinum Eagle Proofs was a distinctly different vision from the clean and spare efficiency of his classic 1997 design. By comparison, the blended incuse and relief techniques adorning the 2001 reverse design looked decidedly baroque. Rogers’ “Eagle Above America’s Southwest” features the first Bald Eagle on a Platinum Proof reverse flying towards the setting sun on the western horizon. It is also the first time the Bald Eagle is featured in the background of the reverse. On this issue, the Bald Eagle flies above an archetypical Arizona desert scene populated by three giant native saguaro cacti prominently featured in the foreground.

Rogers’ design for the “UNITED STATES OF AMERICA” legend follows Maletsky’s lead from the previous two years by capping the coin with a single line of text arced at the top rim. The legends for fineness “.9995 Platinum” and government guaranteed platinum weight continue to move around the reverse. This time they appear stacked near the left rim just above the desert horizon. After sharing space with the fineness and weight legends on the 2000 Proofs, the coin’s legal tender denomination returns to its classic solo position at the bottom center. The West Point Mint “W” mint mark is neatly located near the right rim just above the mountain range horizon line.

Original Total Mintage Summary:

Including all four denominations, there was a total of 51,116 Platinum Eagle Proofs produced and sold in 2001. At the time, it was by far the rarest total mintage to date. However, by the end of 2005, the 2001 Platinum Eagle Proofs had dropped to the fifth rarest by total population. As in every previous year, the $50 Proof coin is still the most rare with only 8,268 coins produced.

NGC Certified Population Summary:

Additionally, through June 26, 2009, a total of only 188 four coin Platinum Eagle Proof sets from 2001 had been certified by NGC in Proof 70 condition.

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