2002 American Gold Eagle
Every version of the 2002 Gold Eagle with mintages, the gold it contains, which versions carry a premium and what to check on yours.
- Year
- 2002
- 1 oz bullion mintage
- 222,029
- Versions
- 8
- Metal
- 22 karat gold (91.67%)
Original illustration of the coin's size and metal. Tap to flip. Not a picture of the actual design.
Metal value · Small premium · Collector premium · Significant rarity. We use bands because metal and coin prices change daily.
What is a 2002 Gold Eagle worth?
The 2002 bullion Gold Eagle is worth its gold content: weight times the day's spot price, plus a modest dealer premium when you buy and less when you sell. Its scarcer versions are different: the 2002 1/4 oz bullion (62,027) rates small premium.
Metal value = troy ounces of gold × the day's spot price. For collector versions, check recent sold results for the same version and grade.
Every 2002 Gold Eagle version
| Version | Mint mark | Size | Mintage | Value band |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bullion | None | 1 oz ($50) | 222,029 | Metal value |
| Bullion | None | 1/2 oz ($25) | 70,027 | Small premium |
| Bullion | None | 1/4 oz ($10) | 62,027 | Small premium |
| Bullion | None | 1/10 oz ($5) | 230,027 | Metal value |
| Proof | See below | 1 oz ($50) | 27,499 | Small premium |
| Proof | See below | 1/2 oz ($25) | 26,646 | Small premium |
| Proof | See below | 1/4 oz ($10) | 29,242 | Small premium |
| Proof | See below | 1/10 oz ($5) | 40,864 | Small premium |
Eight versions bear the 2002 date. Bullion coins in all four sizes have no mint mark and a lustrous, non-mirrored finish. Proofs in all four sizes show mirror fields, frosted relief and a small mint mark on the obverse. They came in individual capsules inside presentation boxes with certificates. A plastic capsule on its own proves nothing, since collectors often put bullion coins in capsules too. The reverse also states the weight of gold and the face value, which settles the size at a glance. Read that before you reach for a ruler or a scale.
Quick answers
- How much gold is in a 2002 Gold Eagle?
- Each coin contains its stated weight of pure gold: 1/10 troy ounce in the $5 coin, 1/4 troy ounce in the $10 coin, 1/2 troy ounce in the $25 coin and one troy ounce in the $50 coin. The alloy is 91.67% gold, 3% silver, 5.33% copper.
- How many 2002 Gold Eagles were made?
- 222,029 one ounce bullion coins plus 124,251 collector versions (proof, burnished and special finishes).
- Is the 2002 Gold Eagle worth more than its gold?
- The bullion coin trades close to its metal value plus a dealer premium. Collector versions in their original packaging bring a small premium.
- Is the Gold Eagle legal tender?
- Yes. Each size carries a face value ($5, $10, $25 and $50), but nobody spends them: the gold is worth far more than the face value.
The Gold Eagle in 2002
Bullion buying recovered slowly in 2002. The one ounce coin rose to 222,029 and the tenth ounce sold 230,027. The half ounce, at 70,027, outsold the quarter ounce at 62,027, only the second time that had happened after 1993. Total bullion production came to 584,110 coins, a modest step up from the 2001 low. In ounces of gold, bullion sales rose by about two fifths.
Proof sales edged up from 2001 to 40,864 tenth ounce, 29,242 quarter ounce, 26,646 half ounce and 27,499 one ounce. These numbers sit in the middle of the range for the period, so 2002 proofs are neither especially scarce nor especially common. The year has no design changes or special releases among the regular issues, which keeps it simple to identify. Gold was beginning a long climb that would last most of the decade. Bullion sales would rise again in 2003 as more buyers came back to the market. Proof collectors, meanwhile, bought roughly 13,000 more coins than in 2001.
2002 Gold Eagle by the numbers
The Mint sold 222,029 one ounce bullion Gold Eagles dated 2002. That ranks 8th lowest of the 39 bullion dates from 1986 to 2024.
Against the dates around it, 2002 bullion sales were 1.5 times the 2001 figure and 1.9 times fewer than 2003.
Collector versions dated 2002 add up to 124,251 coins across 4 versions. The scarcest is the 2002 1/2 oz proof at 26,646; the most plentiful is the 2002 1/10 oz proof at 40,864.
Fractional bullion that year: 230,027 1/10 oz coins, 62,027 1/4 oz coins and 70,027 1/2 oz coins. The 1/4 oz is the scarce size of the year.
What to check on yours
- Weigh and measure it. A genuine one ounce Gold Eagle weighs 33.931 g and measures 32.7 mm; the fractional sizes are 3.393 g (1/10 oz), 8.483 g (1/4 oz) and 16.965 g (1/2 oz). Fakes are usually the wrong weight or the wrong thickness.
- Try a magnet. Gold is not magnetic, so a coin that sticks is not genuine. A coin that does not stick still needs the other checks.
- Look for the mint mark. Bullion strikes have none; proofs and burnished coins carry a small letter. A mirror field with frosted design means a proof, a soft satin look means burnished.
- Handle it by the edge and never clean it. Fingerprints, wiping and polishing leave marks that cost collector versions much of their premium.
- Keep the original capsule, box and certificate with collector versions. Coins that come with them are easier to sell and more likely to bring their full premium.
The half ounce proof at 26,646 is the scarcest 2002 Gold Eagle. It and the one ounce proof at 27,499 bring a small premium in original packaging. The quarter ounce bullion coin at 62,027 is the lowest bullion figure of the year and can earn a small premium in high certified grades. Otherwise 2002 bullion coins trade close to metal value. Look for clean, mirror-like fields when buying a proof; spots and haze are common faults in coins stored badly for years. Bullion buyers rarely care about grade.
Arabic dates and the bullion boom (1992 to 2005)
From 1992 the date switched to ordinary numerals and the program settled into a routine of four bullion sizes and four proofs every year. Bullion demand was modest in the early and middle 1990s. The one ounce coin sold just 189,148 pieces in 1996. The quarter and half ounce sizes stayed below 100,000 every year from 1992 to 1996.
Then came the late 1990s surge. One ounce bullion sales jumped to 664,508 in 1997, 1,468,530 in 1998 and 1,505,026 in 1999, while the tenth ounce hit 2,750,338 in 1999, by far its biggest year. Worries about computer failures at the turn of the millennium are often given as one reason people stocked up on gold. In 1999 a small number of tenth and quarter ounce bullion coins were struck with unfinished proof dies and show a W mint mark, a recognized variety worth checking for.
Demand dropped almost as quickly as it had risen. The 2001 one ounce bullion coin sold only 143,605, one of the lowest one ounce totals of any year. Proof mintages drifted down across the era too, from about 41,000 to 65,000 per size in 1992 to between 23,000 and 38,000 in 2001, before recovering a little by 2005. The half ounce is usually the scarcest proof of the year in this period. Most of these proofs are plentiful enough to carry only a small premium over metal value when they're complete with box and certificate.
Mintage chart
Specifications
| Program | American Gold Eagle |
|---|---|
| Issuer | United States Mint |
| Metal | 22 karat gold (91.67%) |
| Alloy | 91.67% gold, 3% silver, 5.33% copper |
| Sizes | 1/10 oz ($5, 3.393 g, 16.5 mm); 1/4 oz ($10, 8.483 g, 22 mm); 1/2 oz ($25, 16.965 g, 27 mm); 1 oz ($50, 33.931 g, 32.7 mm) |
| Edge | Reeded |
| One ounce coin | 33.931 g, 32.7 mm |
Frequently asked questions
Is the 2002 half ounce Gold Eagle scarce?
The proof is the scarcest version of the year at 26,646. The half ounce bullion coin, at 70,027, is more common. Neither is a key date, but the proof carries a small premium.
How many 2002 one ounce Gold Eagles were made?
222,029 bullion coins and 27,499 proofs. Bullion sales were up from 143,605 in 2001, an early sign that interest in gold was returning. The proof is by far the scarcer of the two.
Mintages: American Gold Eagle (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0), compiled from US Mint figures. How we build these pages.