The 1929 Gold Half Eagle and the Great Depression

The 1929 gold half eagle had a respectable mintage of 662,000 but ranks today as one of the greatest coin rarities of the 20th century.

The Stock Market crash of October 1929 and the onset of the Great Depression negated their need in commercial channels, so approximately 99.8% of their mintage languished in Treasury Department storage.

Following President Franklin Roosevelt’s Gold Recall Order of 1933, the government’s entire supply of 1929 gold half eagles were melted down, cast into ingots, and stored at the United States Bullion Depository at Fort Knox, Kentucky.

Fewer than 1000 examples of the 1929 gold half eagles are known to exist.

Collectors have competed fiercely for the limited survivors of this rare coin date for decades, pushing prices much higher and faster than average collectible coins.