1920-S Indian Head Eagle
Circulation strike struck at the San Francisco Mint · 126,500 made
- Mintage
- 126,500
- Metal
- 90% gold, 10% copper
- Weight
- 16.718 g
- Diameter
- 27 mm
Original illustration. Tap to flip. Not a photograph of the actual coin.
Face value · Metal value · Small premium · Collector premium · Significant rarity. We use bands because prices change daily.
What is a 1920-S Indian Head Eagle worth?
Few coins in the series are harder to find. Even a worn 1920-S sells well above face value. The flip side is that counterfeits and altered dates are common, so authentication matters.
What would make yours worth more:
- Uncirculated condition with full original luster
- A die variety or minting error
- Certification by PCGS or NGC, which buyers expect for scarce dates
For market prices, check recent sold results for certified coins in the same grade.
Quick answers
- Is the 1920-S Indian Head Eagle rare?
- Yes. Only 126,500 were made, 10th lowest of the 31 regular issues in the series.
- Is the 1920-S Indian Head Eagle real gold?
- No, it's gold: 0.4837 troy ounces of pure gold.
- Where is the mint mark on a 1920 Indian Head Eagle?
- On the reverse, to the left of the arrow points. Philadelphia coins have no mint mark. On this coin the mark is S, for San Francisco.
- How many 1920-S Indian Head Eagle coins were made?
- 126,500.
What to check on your 1920-S
- Make sure the mint mark really is an S. A worn or filled mark can be misread.
- Count the stars on the edge. From 1912 the edge carries 48 raised stars, after New Mexico and Arizona joined the Union. Counterfeiters have sometimes got the count or the spacing wrong.
- Check the date and mint mark under magnification for tooling or added letters. Scarce dates are the ones forgers alter.
- Judge the grade under good light. Check the feathers above Liberty's eye and the eagle's wing. Gold is soft, so bag marks on the cheek strongly affect the grade.
Gold coins are counterfeited more than any other US coins. A genuine 1920-S weighs 16.718 g and measures 27 mm. Buy certified examples from a reputable dealer. Low-mintage dates attract altered and counterfeit coins. Check that the mint mark and date have not been tooled or added, or buy one already certified by PCGS or NGC.
The story of the 1920-S
San Francisco hadn't struck the Indian Head Eagle since 1916. When it came back in 1920, it made 126,500. After that, San Francisco didn't make another until 1930.
No other mint struck it for circulation that year, so every 1920 you find is from San Francisco. In the whole series, its mintage sits closest to the 1909-D (121,540) and the 1916-S (138,500).
San Francisco struck the Indian Head Eagle in 11 issues between 1908 and 1930. By mintage this one lands in the more common half, while the key for that mint is the 1911-S (51,000).
Only two dates in thirteen years (1917 to 1929)
No eagles were struck from 1917 to 1919, from 1921 to 1925 or from 1927 to 1929. Only two dates exist from this long stretch: the 1920-S with 126,500 struck and the 1926 from Philadelphia with 1,014,000. Denver struck no eagles after 1914, so neither date has a Denver counterpart. Fakes of the 1920-S are known.
Most 1920-S eagles stayed in government vaults and were melted after 1933, so it is one of the rarest dates of the series. The 1926 is the opposite case. Many were exported to European banks and later returned, so it is one of the most common Indian eagles in mint state and a popular type coin. Both dates use the 48-star edge introduced in 1912.
How to recognize it
Augustus Saint-Gaudens' $10 gold piece shows Liberty in a feathered headdress inscribed LIBERTY, with 13 stars above and the date below. The reverse shows a standing eagle on a bundle of arrows with an olive branch. The edge has raised stars: 46 until 1911 and 48 from 1912. IN GOD WE TRUST was added to the reverse field in 1908. The mint mark is to the left of the arrows.
Mintage chart
Specifications
| Series | Indian Head Eagle (1907–1933) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1920 |
| Mint | San Francisco Mint |
| Mint mark | "S" |
| Strike type | Circulation strike |
| Mintage | 126,500 |
| Face value | $10 |
| Composition | 90% gold, 10% copper |
| Weight | 16.718 grams |
| Diameter | 27 mm |
| Edge | Raised stars (46, then 48 from 1912) |
| Designer | Augustus Saint-Gaudens |
Mintage: Indian Head eagle (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0), compiled from US Mint records and the Guide Book of United States Coins. How we build these pages.