Owner Comments:
Mintage 4,847,549
Minted at Philadelphia without mintmark
Absolutely phenomenal strike and smooth lustrous shine on this 1998 American Silver Eagle with no spotting whatsoever (and I didn't have to pull my hair out to find it !). This MS-69 is another virtually flawless example, both on the obverse and reverse, with a fabulously sharp strike on all the prime focal areas, blast white mint luster, finely textured fields, and fabulous eye appeal. No scuffs or hairlines. However, it does have one very light minuscule (and non-detracting) contact mark on the reverse field just to the right of the arrowheads that the Eagle is grasping which, I imagine, is probably the reason it did not grade a MS-70. Even though this coin didn't grade a perfect MS-70, I feel that it is so sufficiently beautiful in eye appeal, that it is a perfect coin for me.
Numismatic News: Public interest in silver increased in 1998 as silver prices ended the year at about 65 cents higher than in 1997. There were approximately 550,000 more bullion strike American Silver Eagles sold as compared to 1997.
1998 also saw the announcement of an upcoming series of circulating commemorative coins featuring State quarters (to be issued through 2008) and a new dollar coin (the Sacagawea "golden dollar").
1998 average silver price: $5.55/ounce