2000 American Platinum Eagle

Every 2000 Platinum Eagle version

Bullion coins without a mint mark came in four sizes: 34,027 tenth ounce, 20,054 quarter ounce, 18,892 half ounce and 10,003 one ounce. Proofs with a W were 15,651, 11,995, 11,049 and 12,453 in the same order. The barn and field on the reverse identify a proof. The soaring eagle means bullion. A loose one ounce bullion coin from 2000 deserves a careful look at its date before you put it away. The half ounce proof, at 11,049, is the smallest proof size this year. Bullion coins of any size usually turn up loose or in plastic tubes.

Quick answers

How much platinum is in a 2000 Platinum Eagle?

Each coin contains its stated weight of pure platinum: 1/10 troy ounce in the $10 coin, 1/4 troy ounce in the $25 coin, 1/2 troy ounce in the $50 coin and one troy ounce in the $100 coin. The alloy is 99.95% platinum.

How many 2000 Platinum Eagles were made?

10,003 one ounce bullion coins plus 51,148 collector versions (proof, burnished and special finishes).

Is the 2000 Platinum Eagle worth more than its platinum?

Yes. With only 10,003 one ounce bullion coins sold, the 2000 is a low mintage date, so it brings a premium over its platinum value.

Is the Platinum Eagle legal tender?

Yes. Each size carries a face value ($10, $25, $50 and $100), but nobody spends them: the platinum is worth far more than the face value.

The 2000 proof design

Bald eagle flying above Midwestern field, barn and house. Designer: Al Maletsky.

2000 Platinum Eagle by the numbers

The Mint sold 10,003 one ounce bullion Platinum Eagles dated 2000. That ranks 6th lowest of the 19 bullion dates from 1997 to 2021.

Against the dates around it, 2000 bullion sales were 5.7 times fewer than 1999 and 1.4 times fewer than 2001.

Collector versions dated 2000 add up to 51,148 coins across 4 versions. The scarcest is the 2000-W 1/2 oz proof at 11,049; the most plentiful is the 2000-W 1/10 oz proof at 15,651.

Fractional bullion that year: 34,027 1/10 oz coins, 20,054 1/4 oz coins and 18,892 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 Platinum Eagle weighs 31.12 g and measures 32.7 mm; the fractional sizes are 3.112 g (1/10 oz), 7.78 g (1/4 oz) and 15.56 g (1/2 oz). Fakes are usually the wrong weight or the wrong thickness.
• Try a magnet. Platinum 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 2000 one ounce bullion coin is a sleeper. With just 10,003 struck, nice examples can earn a collector premium rather than the usual small premium for bullion. Proofs carry a collector premium too, with the half ounce at 11,049 the lowest. Condition matters more for the bullion coin than usual, since buyers paying extra for scarcity want clean, unmarked surfaces. A 2000 one ounce bullion coin with a scratched or spotted surface will trade much closer to metal value, so handle any you find by the edges.

Launch and the Vistas of Liberty (1997 to 2002)

The Platinum Eagle arrived in 1997 as the first platinum coin the US Mint had ever struck. It came in four sizes, 1/10, 1/4, 1/2 and 1 ounce, each in bullion and proof. In that first year both versions shared Thomas D. Rogers's soaring eagle on the reverse, with John Mercanti's Statue of Liberty on the obverse.

From 1998 the proofs went their own way. The Vistas of Liberty series put a bald eagle over a different American landscape each year: New England with a lighthouse in 1998, the Southeastern wetlands in 1999, Midwestern farmland in 2000, the saguaro cacti of the Southwest in 2001 and a lake ringed by Northwestern mountains in 2002. Rogers and Al Maletsky shared the designs. Bullion coins kept the original soaring eagle throughout, which is the quickest way to tell the two apart without a loupe.

Mintages in these years look large next to what came later. The 1998 one ounce bullion coin reached 133,002 pieces, the highest of the early run, while the 2000 one ounce bullion fell to just 10,003. Proofs drifted downward from about 20,000 one ounce coins in 1997 to under 10,000 by 2002. For collectors, the appeal is the complete Vistas set in all four sizes, which is still achievable but takes some patience to assemble in matching condition. If you inherited a group of early Platinum Eagles, sort them by reverse first. Anything with a landscape behind the eagle is a proof from 1998 to 2002.

Mintage chart

Specifications

Frequently asked questions