Most 2009 Ultra High Relief Double Eagles Grading MS70?

Although there have been some reports of damaged or flawed 2009 Ultra High Relief Double Eagle Gold Coins, the vast majority seem to be arriving in excellent condition. It also seems that the majority of coins sent to PCGS or NGC for grading are coming back MS70.

I just reviewed the PCGS and NGC graded 2009 UHR's listed on eBay and was surprised by the high proportion of MS70 graded coins. While this might not be indicative of the overall population of graded and ungraded coins, it seems to suggest that most of the UHR Double Eagles being received are beautiful high grade coins-- or "perfect" MS70 coins in the eyes of the major grading companies.

At the time of writing this post, there were 13 PCGS graded 2009 Ultra High Relief Double Eagles listed on eBay. A total of 11 out of 13 coins were graded PCGS MS70. Searching completed auctions finds another 11 coins. From this batch 11 out of 11 were graded PCGS MS70. These coins all carry the (sometimes controversial) "First Strike" designation. This designation is available for coins submitted to PCGS within the first 30 days of release.

The UHR Double Eagles graded PCGS MS70 have sold for prices from $2,650 to $3,500. The first UHR graded by PCGS, which was mentioned in several print publications seems to have sold for a best offer of $10,000. View the current eBay auctions for UHR's graded PCGS MS70.

On the other side of the field, there were 15 UHR's graded by NGC listed on eBay. A total of 12 out of 15 were graded NGC MS 70. Each coin carried the "Early Releases" designation. Completed auctions find another 8 NGC graded UHR's with 7 out of 8 graded NGC MS 70.

The UHR Double Eagles graded NGC MS 70 have sold for prices from $2,400 to $3,000. View the current eBay auctions for UHR's graded NGC MS70.

From all of the above data, there were 41 out of 47 coins received the highest grade of MS70. As mentioned, this is a very high proportion of MS70's.

It is possible that people who had their graded and received MS70's were tempted to sell the coins immediately since they saw the high prices being paid. People who had their coins graded and received MS69's may have been less tempted and kept the coins. This would distort the ratio of MS70 graded coins on the market.

It's also possible that the US Mint took extra care producing and handling the 2009 Ultra High Relief Double Eagle Gold Coins, creating a high percentage of "perfect" coins. As suggested by a comment on a previous post, I have put together a survey to try to gauge the condition of coins being received by readers.


The poll is closed. Someone thought it was clever to vote unacceptable 94 times in a row.

The responses for the above survey are intentionally worded as general descriptions, so everyone can provide a response. If you want to provide more details on your coin, feel free to leave your comments below or on Coin Network.