1913 Indian Head Eagle
Circulation strike struck at the Philadelphia Mint · 442,000 made
- Mintage
- 442,000
- Metal
- 90% gold, 10% copper
- Weight
- 16.718 g
- Diameter
- 27 mm
Original illustration. Tap to flip. Not a photograph of the actual coin.
Face value · Metal value · Small premium · Collector premium · Significant rarity. We use bands because prices change daily.
What is a 1913 Indian Head Eagle worth?
Collectors pay a real premium for this date, worn or not, because far fewer were made than usual. Uncirculated pieces go much higher.
What would make yours worth more:
- Uncirculated condition with full original luster
- A die variety or minting error
- Certification by PCGS or NGC, which buyers expect for scarce dates
For market prices, check recent sold results for certified coins in the same grade.
Quick answers
- Is the 1913 Indian Head Eagle rare?
- Yes. Only 442,000 were made, 25th lowest of the 31 regular issues in the series.
- Is the 1913 Indian Head Eagle real gold?
- No, it's gold: 0.4837 troy ounces of pure gold.
- Where is the mint mark on a 1913 Indian Head Eagle?
- On the reverse, to the left of the arrow points. Philadelphia coins have no mint mark.
- Which Philadelphia dates near 1913 are scarcer?
- The 1908 (No Motto) at 33,500, the 1914 at 151,000, the 1909 at 184,789, plus 4 more. So the 1913 is one of the easier dates of its stretch.
- How many 1913 Indian Head Eagle coins were made?
- 442,000.
What to check on your 1913
- There's no mint mark on this one, so the date and condition are what matter.
- Count the stars on the edge. From 1912 the edge carries 48 raised stars, after New Mexico and Arizona joined the Union. Counterfeiters have sometimes got the count or the spacing wrong.
- Check the date and mint mark under magnification for tooling or added letters. Scarce dates are the ones forgers alter.
- Judge the grade under good light. Check the feathers above Liberty's eye and the eagle's wing. Gold is soft, so bag marks on the cheek strongly affect the grade.
Gold coins are counterfeited more than any other US coins. A genuine 1913 weighs 16.718 g and measures 27 mm. Buy certified examples from a reputable dealer. Low-mintage dates attract altered and counterfeit coins. Check that the date have not been tooled or added, or buy one already certified by PCGS or NGC.
The story of the 1913
Output at Philadelphia climbed to 442,000 in 1913, from 405,000 the year before. The next year it made 151,000 (1914).
It was the big producer of the year, well ahead of 1913-S (66,000). In the whole series, its mintage sits closest to the 1912 (405,000) and the 1911 (505,500).
Philadelphia struck the Indian Head Eagle in 14 issues between 1907 and 1933. By mintage this one lands in the more common half, while the key for that mint is the 1907 (Rolled Edge, Periods) (42). Within the 1910s it's 13th smallest of 16, between the 1912 (405,000) and the 1911 (505,500).
More on the 1913
Philadelphia's 442,000 eagles of 1913 dwarf San Francisco's 66,000, making the Philadelphia coin roughly seven times as common that year. Denver struck no eagles in 1913, so those are the only two versions. Philadelphia's total was up from 405,000 in 1912.
1913 brought new designs elsewhere at the Mint, with the Buffalo nickel replacing the Liberty Head nickel, but the eagle carried on unchanged. The 1913 is a common date in circulated and lower uncirculated grades, so it's valued mainly on its gold content plus a modest collector premium. Uncirculated coins with full luster and few marks bring more. Make sure there's no S to the left of the arrowheads: the 1913-S is one of the scarcer dates of the series, so the mint mark check is worth the extra minute. Then judge the cheek and neck for marks, which are what usually separate an average uncirculated coin from a choice one. A 1913 with no mint mark is a solid, affordable coin for a type set.
Steady issues and the 1911-D key (1909 to 1916)
With the motto in place, eagles were struck in most years at Philadelphia, Denver and San Francisco. The 1911-D, only 30,100, is the key of the period. The 1911-S, 1913-S and 1915-S are scarce, especially well struck. Denver struck 2,356,640 in 1910, the largest branch mint total of these years.
In 1912 two more stars were added to the edge for New Mexico and Arizona, raising the count from 46 to 48. Mint marks sit on the reverse to the left of the arrowheads. Large gold coins like these picked up bag marks easily, so the cheek and the field in front of the face are the places to check. The 1916-S closed the period before World War I halted production.
Elsewhere in US coinage in 1913
James Earle Fraser's Buffalo nickel replaced the Liberty Head nickel. The bison was redrawn standing on flat ground partway through the year because the raised mound wore away too quickly.
How to recognize it
Augustus Saint-Gaudens' $10 gold piece shows Liberty in a feathered headdress inscribed LIBERTY, with 13 stars above and the date below. The reverse shows a standing eagle on a bundle of arrows with an olive branch. The edge has raised stars: 46 until 1911 and 48 from 1912. IN GOD WE TRUST was added to the reverse field in 1908. The mint mark is to the left of the arrows.
Mintage chart
Specifications
| Series | Indian Head Eagle (1907–1933) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1913 |
| Mint | Philadelphia Mint |
| Mint mark | None |
| Strike type | Circulation strike |
| Mintage | 442,000 |
| Face value | $10 |
| Composition | 90% gold, 10% copper |
| Weight | 16.718 grams |
| Diameter | 27 mm |
| Edge | Raised stars (46, then 48 from 1912) |
| Designer | Augustus Saint-Gaudens |
Other 1913 Indian Head Eagle issues
| Coin | Mintage | Type | Silver |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1913 Indian Head Eagle | 442,000 | Circulation strike | – |
| 1913-S Indian Head Eagle | 66,000 | Circulation strike | – |
Mintage: Indian Head eagle (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0), compiled from US Mint records and the Guide Book of United States Coins. How we build these pages.