The 2009 Ultra High Relief or UHR Double Eagle gold coin was released by the Unites States Mint facility at West Point, New York, on January 22, 2009 as a legal tender coin with a face value of $20. It is a recreation of the 1907 design by sculptor Augustus Saint-Gaudens which never successfully went into circulation. The coin is one troy ounce of 24-karat gold,.4 mm thick and 27 mm in diameter. It required two strikes at 65 metric tons to get the high relief on the coin. The coin's sale price was tied to the London Fix average gold price. The coin was distributed throughout 2009 and a total of 115,178 coins were sold during that time period.
HISTORY
In the early 1900's, President Theodore Roosevelt believed that the country's coinage should artistically reflect the success and ideals of American democracy. He personally invited renowned designer and sculptor Augustus Saint-Gaudens (1848-1907) to redesign the coinage. Unfortunately, the country did not yet have the technology to adequately carry out the sculptor's ultra high relief vision for the beautiful UHR Double Eagle gold coin and so after several efforts, the coin was never released into circulation. In 2008, under the direction of the US Mint Director Ed May, the Mint was able to make a digital mapping of the coin from the original plasters created by the artist.
DESIGN
The design is a recreation of the original coin with Lady Liberty striding forward on the obverse or front side and a young eagle flying at sunrise on the reverse side. The modifications to the UHR Double Eagle coin include a change in the number of stars on the obverse side from 46 to 50 in order to reflect the country's current number of states. The date on the coin was updated to MMIX, the Roman numeral for 2009. The motto IN GOD WE TRUST was added on the reverse side below the sun's rays. Both sides have an added small border edge and on the raised edge is the lettering E PLURIBUS UNUM with the letter separated by stars.
DISTRIBUTION
Orders on the coin began on January 22, 2009. Each coin came in an attractive wooden box and was accompanied by a hardcover book giving the history of the UHR coin. There was a several month wait for customers after a coin order was placed. Pricing for the coin was according to the US Mint Price Standard for platinum and gold coins. The prices varied weekly depending on the London Fix weekly average gold price. The price of the coin after the first week of sales was $1,289.00