1915 Indian Head Eagle
Circulation strike struck at the Philadelphia Mint · 351,000 made
- Mintage
- 351,000
- 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 1915 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 1915 Indian Head Eagle rare?
- Yes. Only 351,000 were made, 23rd lowest of the 31 regular issues in the series.
- Is the 1915 Indian Head Eagle real gold?
- No, it's gold: 0.4837 troy ounces of pure gold.
- Where is the mint mark on a 1915 Indian Head Eagle?
- On the reverse, to the left of the arrow points. Philadelphia coins have no mint mark.
- Which Philadelphia dates near 1915 are scarcer?
- The 1914 at 151,000, the 1910 at 318,500. So the 1915 is on the scarcer side for those years.
- How many 1915 Indian Head Eagle coins were made?
- 351,000.
What to check on your 1915
- 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 1915 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 1915
Output at Philadelphia climbed to 351,000 in 1915, from 151,000 the year before. After that, Philadelphia didn't make another until 1926.
It was the big producer of the year, well ahead of 1915-S (59,000). In the whole series, its mintage sits closest to the 1914-D (343,500) and the 1908 (With Motto) (341,370).
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 11th smallest of 16, between the 1914-D (343,500) and the 1912 (405,000).
More on the 1915
Philadelphia struck 351,000 eagles in 1915, nearly six times San Francisco's 59,000. Denver had already struck its last eagle the year before. Philadelphia's total also more than doubled its 151,000 of 1914. With Denver out of the picture, the 1915 and 1915-S are the only eagles of the year.
It would be Philadelphia's last Indian Head eagle for more than a decade: none were struck there again until 1926. That gives the 1915 a natural place in a set as the end of the prewar Philadelphia run. It's one of the more available Philadelphia dates in circulated and lower uncirculated grades, so its value starts with its gold and adds a collector premium for condition. Check for the absence of a mint mark beside the arrowheads, count 48 stars on the edge and look for bag marks on the cheek before you judge the grade. Coins with original color and unbroken luster bring the strongest premiums. A 1915 also makes a good companion to the 1926, the coin that restarted Philadelphia's production eleven years later.
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 1915
San Francisco hosted the Panama-Pacific International Exposition, for which the Mint struck commemorative coins including $50 gold pieces.
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 | 1915 |
| Mint | Philadelphia Mint |
| Mint mark | None |
| Strike type | Circulation strike |
| Mintage | 351,000 |
| 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 1915 Indian Head Eagle issues
| Coin | Mintage | Type | Silver |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1915 Indian Head Eagle | 351,000 | Circulation strike | – |
| 1915-S Indian Head Eagle | 59,000 | 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.