Silver Eagle Coins And Some Info

For many years, the worth of gold (known as the "Gold Standard") set the worth for currencies over the world and was used by most economies to calculate the value of these money. Afterwards, the "Silver Standard" came to bepreferred by the Europeans as they began to favor silver over gold. Gold and Silver were used simultaneously to set the value for the currencies of various nations.





American had adhered a dual metal standard in 1873, basing its silver standard on "pieces of eight" or pesos, referred to as Spanish real. Its gold standard was determined by the coin known as the "Eagle" which acquired popularity in Europe following the economic meltdown post-World War I. The American Civil War started the free banking crisis of the late 1800s that finished America’s use of the silver standard. Making ceased on silver coins, and the economic chaos that followed World War I and the Great Depression necessitated a paper currency that was supported by the solid foundation of a gold reserve.





However, the dismal economy of the 1930s caused Congress to change to the silver standard from the gold standard in 1933. Until 1968, the U.S. Treasury (instead of the Federal Reserve), used silver certificates to trade silver dollars and silver bullion. By the 1970s, the Defense National Stockpile accumulated an more than silver that resulted in Congress conceding authorization to liquidate it by the 1980s. This led to Silver Us Coins, such as the American Silver Eagle, being minted in 1986, decades after the last silver coins had been minted.





From 1986 to 1992, they were struck in San Francisco and bore the "S" mintmark. The coins were manufactured in Philadelphia and marked with a "P" for the next seven years. As of 2001, they bear the "W" mintmark of West Point where they are manufactured to this day.





Record sales of silver bullion coins are presently being set by the 2010 Proof Silver Eagle Coins in reaction to the economic recession. An anticipated shortage, projected by a weak start to the year, affected producing and sales to continue to November 19, 2010. Despite the cost of $45.95 per coin, the United States Mint has restricted each home to a purchase of only one hundred coins.