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The king of the silver eagles, the 1995-W silver eagle is one of the most coveted and important of all modern U.S. coins. It is also among the most controversial. As a result of a surcharge placed on these coins by the U.S. Mint, Proof silver eagles have been money-makers for the Mint since they were first issued in 1986. Roughly 500,000 of them were sold to collectors each year, making them a cash cow. Although Proof gold eagles were also offered during the same period, their higher cost meant that their total sales volume would amount to only 10 percent of the number of Proof silver coins that sold each year. These 1995 coins were the first Proof silver eagles ever struck at West Point and the first to have the W mintmark. During the 10th year of the American Eagle Bullion program, the U.S. Mint created a 10th-anniversary set of five Proof coins. All four denominations of the 1995 gold eagle were included: the $5 coin (1/10-ounce), the $10 coin (1/4-ounce), the $25 coin (1/2-ounce), and the $50 coin (1-ounce). As with all Proof gold eagles from that year, each coin was struck at West Point and bore the W mintmark. Also included in the set, as the fifth coin, was a Proof 1995 silver eagle. To match the others, it too was struck at West Point. Previous Proof issues had been struck in either San Francisco or Philadelphia, with an S or P mintmark, respectively. In 1995, however, Proof silver eagles were struck in both West Point and Philadelphia. If collectors ordered the coin for the issue price of $23 without the set, they received a 1995-P. The only way to get the 1995-W coin was to shell out the $999 for the complete anniversary set. When the sales period for the 10th-Anniversary Proof Bullion Coinage Set ended, a total of 30,125 had been sold. This figure constitutes the entire mintage of the Proof 1995-W silver eagle, making it tremendously rare. By contrast, more than 400,000 of the Proof 1995-P silver eagle were sold. Collectors were outraged. They accused the Mint of profiteering by forcing their loyal silver eagle customers to shell out a thousand dollars to get a rare issue. There were, after all, 10 times more collectors of Proof silver than Proof gold, making this a logical source of new customers for the Mint. Sales of the 1995-W in the secondary market did little to quell collectors’ frustration. Immediately, the Proof 1995-W silver eagle was valued at a few hundred dollars, over 10 times more than previous issues. And as time passed, the price continued to climb. Collectors wrote to the Mint and even wrote open letters to numismatic publications announcing that they were no longer buying Proof silver eagles. Their threats proved idle, and collectors never abandoned the series en masse. Even as early as January 1997, U.S. Mint Director Philip N. Diehl noted the growth of the program in a U.S. Mint press release: “Despite the controversy and criticism surrounding the issue of the ‘W’ Mint mark Silver Proof Eagle and predictions in the numismatic community that customers would desert the coin wholesale, sales rebounded and rose 15 percent.” The mystique and desirability of this coin have only grown over time. To say that the 1995-W is the “key” to the series is an understatement. Its small mintage of 30,125 is dwarfed by that of every other Proof silver eagle in the series. Its value is nearly equal to that of all the other coins in the series combined. By any measure, the Proof silver eagle program is more popular today than at any point in its past, which only continues to bolster demand for its king rarity, the 1995-W.

Garrett, Jeff; Schechter, Scott; Bressett, Kenneth; Bowers, Q. David (2011-03-04). 100 Greatest US Modern Coins (Kindle Locations 701-735). Whitman Publishing. Kindle Edition.