A Double Eagle Without IN GOD WE TRUST
Turn this coin over and you find the flying eagle, the rising sun, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA and TWENTY DOLLARS. You do not find the national motto. This is a 1908 $20 Saint-Gaudens Double Eagle struck at Philadelphia before the motto returned, sealed by PCGS at MS63.
Roosevelt Against the Motto
Theodore Roosevelt left IN GOD WE TRUST off the new gold coins on purpose. He believed that putting God’s name on money cheapened it. Much of the public saw it the other way, and the outcry reached Congress. The Act of May 18, 1908 restored the motto, and Roosevelt signed it.
In the months before that, the mint kept striking double eagles without it. Philadelphia and Denver both produced 1908 coins with no motto, and the motto appears on coins struck after mid-1908. So the 1908 date comes in two types, and this coin is the earlier No Motto type, from Philadelphia.
Plentiful by Saint Standards
A specific date is not the same thing as a scarce one. Numismatic writer David Akers counted the 1908 No Motto among the most plentiful Saints in mint state back in 1982. In the 1990s the Wells Fargo hoard added some 19,900 more mint state examples, most of them graded MS65 or finer. This is a common date, and we sell it as one.
What sets this coin apart is the date, the No Motto type and the PCGS grade together. Like any graded Saint, its price follows the coin, its grade and its holder, not the gold alone.
What the PCGS MS63 Holder Tells You
MS63 is the grade PCGS calls Choice Uncirculated. Nothing on the coin is worn from circulation, and the fields are relatively clean, but expect some contact marks that catch the eye. The grade is the opinion of PCGS, a major independent grading service, not a description we wrote ourselves.
Every PCGS holder carries a certification number, and entering it on the PCGS website confirms the coin and its grade. PCGS tracks coins from the Wells Fargo hoard under their own pedigree. This listing is for a PCGS MS63 1908 No Motto and makes no promise of that pedigree.
Specifications
This is a 1908 Philadelphia $20 Saint-Gaudens Double Eagle, No Motto, certified PCGS MS63. Struck in .900 fine gold, this 34 mm coin carries 0.9675 troy ounces of gold and is 2.41 mm thick. The designer is Augustus Saint-Gaudens. Everything else is on the Specifications tab.
1908 No Motto Saint-Gaudens Double Eagle PCGS MS63 FAQ
Why does the 1908 No Motto lack IN GOD WE TRUST?
Because President Theodore Roosevelt wanted it off. He felt the motto cheapened God’s name by putting it on money. Congress restored it with the Act of May 18, 1908, and coins struck after mid-1908 carry it.
Is this a Philadelphia or a Denver coin?
Philadelphia. Our Specifications tab gives Philadelphia as the mint, so the coin carries no mint mark. Denver also struck 1908 No Motto double eagles, and those carry a D.
Did this coin come from the Wells Fargo hoard?
Do not count on it. PCGS labels hoard coins with their own Wells Fargo pedigree, and this listing is for a standard PCGS MS63 1908 No Motto without that pedigree.
Is the 1908 No Motto hard to find?
No. It has been counted among the most plentiful Saints in mint state since at least 1982, and the Wells Fargo hoard added thousands more. It is a specific, historic date, not a scarce one.
Is the 1908 No Motto IRA eligible?
No. The tax code treats it as a collectible, because .900 gold falls short of the .995 fineness test and the coin is not the American Gold Eagle exception.
Rather let us pick the date? Browse all our , from culls to certified mint state.
Struck in the months before the motto came back. Add the 1908 No Motto $20 Saint-Gaudens Double Eagle PCGS MS63 to your cart.