1990 American Gold Eagle
Every version of the 1990 Gold Eagle with mintages, the gold it contains, which versions carry a premium and what to check on yours.
- Year
- 1990
- 1 oz bullion mintage
- 373,210
- Versions
- 8
- Metal
- 22 karat gold (91.67%)
Original illustration of the coin's size and metal. Tap to flip. Not a picture of the actual design.
Metal value · Small premium · Collector premium · Significant rarity. We use bands because metal and coin prices change daily.
What is a 1990 Gold Eagle worth?
The 1990 bullion Gold Eagle is worth its gold content: weight times the day's spot price, plus a modest dealer premium when you buy and less when you sell. Its scarcer versions are different: the 1990 1/4 oz bullion (41,000) rates small premium.
Metal value = troy ounces of gold × the day's spot price. For collector versions, check recent sold results for the same version and grade.
Every 1990 Gold Eagle version
| Version | Mint mark | Size | Mintage | Value band |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bullion | None | 1 oz ($50) | 373,210 | Metal value |
| Bullion | None | 1/2 oz ($25) | 31,000 | Small premium |
| Bullion | None | 1/4 oz ($10) | 41,000 | Small premium |
| Bullion | None | 1/10 oz ($5) | 210,210 | Metal value |
| Proof | See below | 1 oz ($50) | 62,401 | Small premium |
| Proof | See below | 1/2 oz ($25) | 51,636 | Small premium |
| Proof | See below | 1/4 oz ($10) | 62,674 | Small premium |
| Proof | See below | 1/10 oz ($5) | 99,349 | Small premium |
1990 has eight versions: bullion and proof in each of the four sizes. Bullion coins have no mint mark and were shipped in bulk, so loose coins with light contact marks are typical. Proofs carry a mint mark, mirror fields and frosted devices and originally came in a capsule and case with a certificate. A magnifier helps on the tenth ounce, where the mint mark and the Roman numeral date are tiny. The half ounce is 27 mm across and weighs 16.966 g, a quick check if you're unsure of the size of a loose coin.
Quick answers
- How much gold is in a 1990 Gold Eagle?
- Each coin contains its stated weight of pure gold: 1/10 troy ounce in the $5 coin, 1/4 troy ounce in the $10 coin, 1/2 troy ounce in the $25 coin and one troy ounce in the $50 coin. The alloy is 91.67% gold, 3% silver, 5.33% copper.
- How many 1990 Gold Eagles were made?
- 373,210 one ounce bullion coins plus 276,060 collector versions (proof, burnished and special finishes).
- Is the 1990 Gold Eagle worth more than its gold?
- The bullion coin trades close to its metal value plus a dealer premium. Collector versions in their original packaging bring a small premium.
- Is the Gold Eagle legal tender?
- Yes. Each size carries a face value ($5, $10, $25 and $50), but nobody spends them: the gold is worth far more than the face value.
The Gold Eagle in 1990
MCMXC is the shortest of the Roman numeral dates. The year kept the downward trend going for fractional bullion: the half ounce fell to 31,000 and the quarter ounce to 41,000, both lower than in 1989. The tenth ounce dropped to 210,210 and the one ounce to 373,210. Only 1991 would see smaller half and quarter ounce bullion numbers among the early dates. In ounces of gold, total bullion sales of 1990 were lower than any year before them.
Proof sales picked up slightly from 1989, with 99,349 tenth ounce, 62,674 quarter ounce, 51,636 half ounce and 62,401 one ounce proofs. That small recovery makes the 1990 proofs a little easier to find than the 1989 proofs, while the 1990 bullion fractionals are harder. It's one of those years where the ordinary bullion strikes are scarcer than the collector versions, which surprises plenty of people. In the quarter and half ounce sizes, more proofs were made than bullion coins. Proof buyers clearly kept coming back.
1990 Gold Eagle by the numbers
The Mint sold 373,210 one ounce bullion Gold Eagles dated 1990. That ranks 15th lowest of the 39 bullion dates from 1986 to 2024.
Against the dates around it, 1990 bullion sales were 1.1 times fewer than 1989 and 1.5 times the 1991 figure.
Collector versions dated 1990 add up to 276,060 coins across 4 versions. The scarcest is the 1990 1/2 oz proof at 51,636; the most plentiful is the 1990 1/10 oz proof at 99,349.
Fractional bullion that year: 210,210 1/10 oz coins, 41,000 1/4 oz coins and 31,000 1/2 oz coins. The 1/2 oz is the scarce size of the year.
What to check on yours
- Weigh and measure it. A genuine one ounce Gold Eagle weighs 33.931 g and measures 32.7 mm; the fractional sizes are 3.393 g (1/10 oz), 8.483 g (1/4 oz) and 16.965 g (1/2 oz). Fakes are usually the wrong weight or the wrong thickness.
- Try a magnet. Gold is not magnetic, so a coin that sticks is not genuine. A coin that does not stick still needs the other checks.
- Look for the mint mark. Bullion strikes have none; proofs and burnished coins carry a small letter. A mirror field with frosted design means a proof, a soft satin look means burnished.
- Handle it by the edge and never clean it. Fingerprints, wiping and polishing leave marks that cost collector versions much of their premium.
- Keep the original capsule, box and certificate with collector versions. Coins that come with them are easier to sell and more likely to bring their full premium.
The 1990 half ounce bullion coin, with 31,000 struck, is the scarcest issue of the year and one of the lowest bullion figures in the whole program. It carries a collector premium, larger in certified high grades. The quarter ounce bullion at 41,000 also earns a premium. Tenth and one ounce bullion coins trade close to metal value. The proofs bring a small premium when complete. Coins in original Mint packaging or certified holders are easier to sell than loose ones. Any sign of cleaning cuts the premium sharply.
Roman numeral years (1986 to 1991)
The Gold Eagle arrived in 1986 with a bang. Bullion buyers took 1,362,650 one ounce coins and more than half a million of each fractional size that first year, while the Mint sold 446,290 one ounce proofs. Every coin from these first six years carries its date in Roman numerals, from MCMLXXXVI to MCMXCI, which makes the era easy to spot at a glance.
Proofs were added a size at a time. Only the one ounce came in proof in 1986. The half ounce joined it in 1987 and from 1988 all four sizes were offered, with sales per size landing between about 44,000 and 144,000 from 1988 to 1991. Collectors were buying steadily even as bullion demand for the smaller coins faded fast.
That fade is what makes this era interesting. The half ounce bullion coin fell from 599,566 in 1986 to 131,255 in 1987, then to 45,000 in 1988, 44,829 in 1989, 31,000 in 1990 and finally 24,100 in 1991, the lowest bullion figure from 1986 to 2024. The quarter ounce followed a similar path down to 36,100. Bullion coins were bought for their metal and handled freely, so nice examples of these fractional dates are harder to find than the mintages suggest. Collectors pay a premium for them, larger for coins in high certified grades. The one ounce bullion coins of the period, made in the hundreds of thousands or more, mostly trade on their gold content.
Mintage chart
Specifications
| Program | American Gold Eagle |
|---|---|
| Issuer | United States Mint |
| Metal | 22 karat gold (91.67%) |
| Alloy | 91.67% gold, 3% silver, 5.33% copper |
| Sizes | 1/10 oz ($5, 3.393 g, 16.5 mm); 1/4 oz ($10, 8.483 g, 22 mm); 1/2 oz ($25, 16.965 g, 27 mm); 1 oz ($50, 33.931 g, 32.7 mm) |
| Edge | Reeded |
| One ounce coin | 33.931 g, 32.7 mm |
Frequently asked questions
What does MCMXC mean on a Gold Eagle?
It's 1990 in Roman numerals: M for 1,000, CM for 900 and XC for 90. Gold Eagles used Roman numerals from 1986 through 1991 before switching to regular numbers in 1992.
Is the 1990 half ounce Gold Eagle rare?
It's scarce. Only 31,000 bullion halves were struck, among the lowest bullion mintages of any Gold Eagle. Coins in sharp condition carry a collector premium over their gold content. Have it checked before selling.
Mintages: American Gold Eagle (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0), compiled from US Mint figures. How we build these pages.