Owner Comments:

“Peak production of tenth-ounce gold eagles was realized in 1999, when a staggering 2.75 million examples were sold. To give some perspective, this figure is 10 times the typical number of sales; for example, in 2009 the net mintage was 270,000 coins. The reason for the considerable spike in sales was clearly known: Y2K.
Concerns about how computer systems would respond in the year 2000 was a constant and seemingly rational fear in 1999. Since a significant amount of software required only a two-digit date, the ramifications of a date recorded simply as “00” were unknown. Would computers, mistakenly programmed to operate as though it were 1900, fail to execute scheduled tasks in the year 2000, causing systems to go offline and financial markets to tumble? Whether or not an investor subscribed to this apocalyptic view, some financial advisors recommended a move to hard assets.
As a result, all U.S. gold bullion coins had banner years in 1999. Every single denomination had by far its best sales to date, but the denomination that was most affected was the tenth-ounce gold eagle with its $5 face value. The reason that this coin became so popular was because it was seen as the best hedge against the doomsday scenario. If electronic trading really were suspended and faith in governments truly rattled, gold would then become the principle medium of exchange. But paying for goods with a one-ounce gold coin, then worth $300, might prove impractical. Making change would also be difficult. On the other hand, a tenth-ounce gold coin, a little bit smaller than a dime and worth about $30, would be an ideal unit for everyday commerce, and they sold like gangbusters!
Faced with the challenge of producing so many coins, the Mint had to make an enormous number of dies. Bullion-issue coins, which have a matte-like finish, are produced without mintmark at West Point, while Proof coins do bear the W mintmark. In the course of producing these coins, apparently dies intended for the production of Proof coins were instead prepared for use and then struck “bullion coins, creating the Mint State 1999-W “With W” $5 gold eagle. This variety is variously described either as “With W,” to make sure that it is not confused with the Proof coin that rightly bears the W mintmark, or as being struck from unpolished (or unfinished) Proof dies. The coin was, however, distributed along with bullion coins, and simply a die with the W mintmark was used in error.
The Mint has reported that, on average, 6,000 tenth-ounce gold eagles are struck from a single die. Today, nearly that many are accounted for by the collecting community, and it’s estimated that 15,000 or more 1999 $5 Mint State gold eagles were struck with the W mintmark. That figure suggests that more than one die was used to create these coins, and therefore that the mistake happened more than once! However unlikely that seems, it’s worth noting that an identical error appears on the 1999 $10 quarter-ounce gold eagle (no. 25 on this top-100 list). These two coins are the first Mint State American eagles ever issued with the W mintmark, a fact that puts them among the most desirable coins and key dates.


Excerpt From: Scott Schecter & Jeff Garrett. “100 Greatest U.S. Modern Coins.” Apple Books. https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/100-greatest-u-s-modern-coins/id866701885?mt=11