$1 Gold Liberty Type 1 AU Common Date

The Type 1 $1 Gold Liberty has a diameter of 13 mm and a total weight of 1.672 grams; made of 0.900 gold, the coin is composed of 90 percent gold and 10 percent copper. It therefore contains .04837 ounces of pure gold. This gold $1 coin was produced for six years from 1849 until 1854. These $1 coins were struck at the Philadelphia branch of the U.S Mint, plus branch mints including Dahlonega, Charlotte, New Orleans and San Francisco. Your order is likely to be fulfilled by a coin produced in Philadelphia from a random year of issue, but always in AU or "About Uncirculated" condition. 
Upon its release into circulation, this coin did not prove popular; its small size led to complaints that it was easily lost and so plans were made to produce a second version type of the coin, with the same weight but a larger diameter. The $1 Gold Liberty Type 1 is the smallest coin produced in U.S. history - so don't let it slip from your grasp. Grab it today, while you still can.

History of the $1 Gold Liberty Type 1 AU Common Date:

It was a chance discovery while a carpenter worked building a water-powered sawmill on the South Fork American River in Coloma, California. James Wilson Marshall glanced down and noticed the sheen of gold in the water as the tell-tale flakes tumbled past him, the year was 1848 and the place? Sutter's Mill.

It was a discovery that was to transform the landscape and the people, contributing in no small part to America's westward expansion. For when word got out over the months that followed, around 300,000 people made the arduous journey to California, galvanized by the promise of gold.

Vast quantities of gold were found in the decade that followed - around $600 million of gold, so some say. And so, with the mining of gold, came the desire for gold coins, making those discoveries useable and, well, assigning a worth to their weight. One of the coins struck in the wake of the Californian Gold Rush was the Common Date $1 Gold Liberty Type 1 AU - authorized by Congress on March 3, 1849, along with the weightier Gold Double Eagle.

The Design of the $1 Gold Liberty Type 1 AU Common Date:

This landmark $1 coin was designed by James B Longacre, Chief Engraver of the U.S. Mint. On the obverse side, we see a left-facing profile portrait of Lady Liberty, shown wearing a beaded coronet emblazoned with the word LIBERTY, her hair partially styled in a bun, though many tendrils have escaped, falling down her neck. Liberty's portrait is surrounded by 13 stars denoting the original states of the union. The reverse design features an olive wreath, almost wholly encircling the value of 1 DOLLAR and the year of issue. Though there are variations as to how closed the wreath is between different years and mints of issue. The lettering UNITED STATES OF AMERICA completes the reverse design.

Overview of the Common Date $1 Gold Liberty Type 1 AU:

90% gold, 10% copper
Weight 1.672 grams
.04837 ounces of pure gold
U.S. Mint
Designer James B Longacre
Random year of issue

Orders placed for products that are not a specific year will be fulfilled with coins of any date, based on availability. Orders of multiple coins may be filled with the same year or a variety of years.