1990-S American Silver Eagle Proof: A Collector’s Guide

By Charles Morgan and Hubert Walker for CoinWeek Notes …..
Collector enthusiasm lifted demand for the 1990-S Proof American Silver Eagle to its highest gross sales determine since 1987. The United States Mint offered 695,510 Proofs to collectors at a problem worth of $23 USD ($57.93 in adjusted 2024 {dollars}). This had been the identical worth that the Mint had charged for the Proof model of their common bullion coin for the reason that program’s second yr.

What Is the 1990-S American Silver Eagle Proof Coin Value?

Coin sellers energetic within the sale of licensed American Silver Eagles have submitted, on common, simply over 2,000 1990-S Proof American Silver Eagles every year for at the least the final 10 years. As of December 2024, the mixed whole of licensed cash from CAC, NGC, and PCGS stands at 53,763. NGC leads the best way with over 29,700 cash licensed, and PCGS closes the hole with 23,971 cash of their holders. CAC is a brand new grading service that reviews simply 92 grading occasions, with 75 graded PR70DCAM.

We’ve been following a development in our evaluation of the sequence: the elevated success charge at NGC and PCGS for Proof 70s. By means of 2014, the NGC success charge was 3.93%, whereas PCGS inhabitants knowledge indicated that 17.85% of the cash submitted and graded earned a 70 grade. We put “and graded” in italics in that final sentence as a result of we’ve no means of figuring out whether or not bulk submitters have been given the choice of no-grading cash that don’t earn the 70 grade, and for the reason that 70 grade is the one constantly worthwhile grade (see terminal level), it’s doable that these 69/70 ratios are indicative of market realities and never a snapshot of a go/fail charge.

We convey this up as a result of these 69/70 charges don’t have anything in frequent with the identical charges since 2014. Over the previous decade, 33.1% of the brand new 1990-S American Silver Eagle Proofs licensed by NGC have graded PF70UCAM, whereas 37.3% of the brand new cash submitted to PCGS have graded PR70DCAM (the 2 providers use totally different nomenclature to say the identical factor).

So, what’s a 1990-S American Silver Eagle value? In its uncooked kind, with full unique authorities packaging, sellers can anticipate $55-$65 per coin, barely lower than the value sellers on websites like eBay get for cash graded Proof 69 by the grading providers. In Proof 70, we’ve tracked examples promoting for a variety of costs between $125 and $245, with the standard instance promoting for about $175. In 2024 {dollars}, it’s cheaper to purchase a 1990-S American Silver Eagle Proof as we speak than it was 10 years in the past, as costs for 70s have declined by about $85 per coin, when costs have been adjusted for inflation.

* * *

Market Information and Noteworthy Specimens

Prime Inhabitants: PCGS PR70DCAM (6,302, 12/2024). NGC PF70UCAM (4,877, 12/2024). CAC PR70DCAM (75, 12/2024).

• NGC PF70UCAM #3200211-003: eBay, December 26, 2024 – $200. Purchase it Now.
• NGC PF70UCAM #6262601-012: eBay, December 24, 2024 – $229.22. Purchase it Now.
• PCGS PR70DCAM #80599206: eBay, December 22, 2024 – 217.50 22 Bids. John Mercanti signature label.
• PCGS PR70DCAM #48224944: eBay, December 15, 2024 – $124.50. 11 Bids.
• PCGS PR70DCAM #44121385: eBay, December 13, 2024 – $199.92. Purchase it Now.
• PCGS PR70DCAM #44155351: eBay, December 12, 2024 – $122.50. 16 Bids.
• PCGS PR70DCAM #14694824: eBay, April 14, 2024 – $150.
• NGC PF70UCAM #6084440-016: eBay, April 10, 2024 – $178.50. John Mercanti signature label.
• PCGS PR70DCAM #35342688: eBay, April 9, 2024 – $199.
• NGC PF70UCAM #2704127-001: Stack’s Bowers, April 3, 2024, Lot 13526 – $125.
• NGC PF70UCAM #4645811-022: eBay, March 27, 2024 – $245.
• NGC PF70UCAM #6681615-009: Stack’s Bowers, August 23, 2023, Lot 31868 – $168.

* * *

Design

Obverse:

Sculptor Adolph A. Weinman’s Girl Liberty is depicted mid-stride. She is seen as a full-body determine, wearing a flowing robe, and draped with a big billowing American flag. She holds laurel and oak branches in her left hand that symbolize the civil and army glories of America, respectively. As Liberty strides confidently in the direction of the rising solar, she additionally reaches out and presents a welcoming and open hand. So giant is Girl Liberty that she is superimposed over the obverse legend LIBERTY ringing the obverse – in reality, she obscures half of the “BE” and nearly your entire “R”. Above Liberty’s outstretched rear foot is IN GOD WE TRUST, and beneath her is the date (1990).

The design resembles sculptor Oscar Roty’s The Sower, a standard picture on French cash. Numismatist Roger Burdette posited in his e book Renaissance of American Coinage (2007) that this was not a coincidence. Whereas Adolph Weinman didn’t straight copy Roty’s work, he did derive vital inspiration from it. Weinman’s Liberty Strolling design shortly grew to become one in all America’s most iconic numismatic pictures and could be used with minor modifications on the American Silver Eagle bullion coin beginning in 1986.

Reverse:

Future United States Mint Chief Engraver John M. Mercanti’s Heraldic Eagle is positioned on the middle of the reverse. Clutched in its beak is a ribbon bearing the motto E PLURIBUS UNUM. Above its head is a constellation of 13 stars configured in an upside-down pyramid formation. The legend (high) UNITED STATES OF AMERICA is wrapped across the design and the fineness and denomination (backside) 1 OZ. FINE SILVER. ONE DOLLAR. Beneath the olive department is the S mint mark of San Francisco.

Edge:

The sting of the 1990-S American Silver Eagle Proof coin is reeded.

1990-S Silver Eagle Proof Coin Specs

* * *