The 2011 Proof American Silver Eagle debuted today from the United States Mint. The coin became available beginning at 12 Noon ET. A price of $59.95 has been attached to each, plus the standard handling charge of $4.95 per order.
Orders for the 2011 Silver Eagle may be placed directly from the United States Mint website at http://www.usmint.gov/catalog or by calling the bureau directly at 1-800-USA-MINT (872-6468). There is a household order limit of 100 coins.
Collector interest in the coin is expected to be intense, especially if last year’s November 19, 2010 release is any indication. In just the first three days, the United States Mint recorded well over a quarter of a million in sales. The 2010 Proof American Silver Eagle would go on to sell an estimated 860,000 before the Mint declared a sell-out the following December.
Of course, the comparison to last year’s release may not exactly be fair as one important factor played into its demand. The Proof American Silver Eagles were actually cancelled the previous year of 2009. The "event" marked the first time this numismatic version was not struck since first debuting in 1986.
That cancellation was brought about by record demand for the associated bullion American Silver Eagles. The United States Mint at the time was required by law to strike them to meet demand. As a result of the cancellation, collectors were extremely anxious to place their initial orders for the 2010 Eagle in an effort to insure they would be able to add them to their collection.
Each American Silver Eagle is struck from one ounce of .999 fine silver to proof quality with a mirror-like background. A mint mark of ‘W’ indicates that is was struck at the US Mint’s facility in West Point. The proof eagle will come in a blue velvet, satin-lined presentation case along with a certificate of authenticity.
Shown on the obverse of the strike is Adolph A. Weinman’s "Walking Liberty" design first used on the 1916-1947 silver half-dollar. It is considered by many to be one of the most beautiful designs ever struck on an American coin. The reverse contains John Mercanti’s heraldic eagle with shield.
For reference, the bullion version does not include a mint mark nor does it have the brilliant mirror-like finish of the collector proof coin. Other details are the same between the two.
The 2011 Proof American Silver Eagle is being sold for $14 more per coin than what the United States Mint charged for the 2010 version, which itself was an increase of $14 from what the bureau charged for the previous 2008 issue. Those increases can almost entirely be attributed to the increase in the price of silver which stood at approximately $15.38 an ounce on the day of the 2008 release. By the time the 2010 strike debuted, silver had jumped to approximately $27.07 an ounce. Silver is currently hovering near $35 an ounce.
Why is the Mint selling the 2011 ASE based “On Demand” rather than some specific mintage? The Bullion coins are also sold based “On Demand” but generally sold in much lager quantities.
The Mint generally tells the public what the mintage of Collector coins are prior to release rather then making the mintage open ended – based “On Demand”.
What’s going on?
How much profit is enough? And Dave, you’re right! Open ended quantities mean, values go down when someone decides to sell.
Hey Guys,
This may be as simple as the Mint saying they finally have enough this year to fill consumer demand. As you may recall in the past Proof ASE’s were limited and were also suspened for one year. The values will ultimatly be determined by the total number sold and at the higher price it will keep the numbers sold down!
The price of silver is at historic highs, the value will never hold up, just wait a while and pick these coins up at a far more reasonable price. Other than a select few examples, the proof/B.U. silver eagles are priced are all priced the same, relative to the price per ounce. Total money maker for the Mint.
I received my 25 coins, today! Wow! I’m impressed. Next purchase will be an NGC PF-70 UC to add to all the other PF 70 Silver Eagles in the series.
Look—this whole new generation of coins that started in 1986 is still a great deal for such a beautiful coin—look at the gold coins from the same era—if you are concerned about a few dollars extra for the “bump” due to silver going up–those that have gold coins with prices leaping upward—I have no problem with minimal price increase for the silver coins—-Gold coins concern me a lot more with their pricing structure—getting into the new gold market seems a lot more risky then Silver—-enjoys these new Silver beauties while they are still affordable—-I know I will
With all of the new uses coming out for Silver every day, along with the increased investment demand. These ASE are going to be a collector’s dream. Two Years from now, we will be wishing we could get these for this price!! I know I am buying my 5 sets!! If I can get my hands on them that is…
The US Mint sent out everybodies subsciption Silver Eagles at the higher price, then made them unavailable for 2 weeks (the return policy from the Mint is 7 days) THEN, they made the Eagle available at the lower cost to those that didn’t have subscriptions. All that time, the price of Silver fluxuated a couple of dollars an ounce. And they refuse to refund the difference of the two prices to those that had subscriptions. Considering this is the FIRST year they started to sell the coins after a 2 year suspension, it appears they did this intentionally to make… Read more »