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The Smithsonian Institution's National Numismatic Collection specimen of the 1822 Capped Head half eagle, obverse and reverse. The FLOAT constituent is priced on the Pogue-Eliasberg specimen, the only one of the three known in private hands; the Smithsonian holds the other two, one of which is pictured.
The Smithsonian Institution's National Numismatic Collection specimen of the 1822 Capped Head half eagle, obverse and reverse. The FLOAT constituent is priced on the Pogue-Eliasberg specimen, the only one of the three known in private hands; the Smithsonian holds the other two, one of which is pictured.

1822 Capped Head Half Eagle

Maker
U.S. Mint (Philadelphia)
Year
1822
Rank
4 of 100
Identifier
$5 gold half eagle, PCGS AU50 (Pogue-Eliasberg specimen — only one of three in private hands)

1822 Capped Head Half Eagle

Realized at auction: $8,400,000, dated 2021-03-25. This is a realized sale. Somebody paid it.

What is it, and why is it in the FLOAT 100?

The most valuable U.S. Mint gold coin ever sold at auction; only three known, two permanently impounded in the Smithsonian.

$5 gold half eagle, PCGS AU50 (Pogue-Eliasberg specimen — only one of three in private hands)

What is the best-sourced number for it?

Figure
$8,400,000
Kind
Realized at auction
Date
2021-03-25

A realized auction price is what a buyer actually paid on the date shown, including the buyer's premium where the sale reported it. It is the strongest kind of reference price, and it is a record of one sale of one object on one day, not a promise of what the next example will bring.

By reference price, 1822 Capped Head Half Eagle is number 5 of 100 in the coins entries of the FLOAT 100. 92 of those 100 rest on a realized sale; the rest carry an asking price or a guide value, and each page says which. Rank within the FLOAT 100 itself (4 here) is editorial: how much an object defines its field, not price alone.

How this is made

The figure
One reference price, shown with its own kind. FLOAT does not average it with anything or adjust it for time.
Realized or not
A realized price is a completed sale. A market asking price and a price-guide value are not sales, and are labeled as such wherever they appear.
Why no grade ladder
Most FLOAT 100 entries are individual objects. There is one of this, so there is no population and no spread across grades to show.
Archive
2026-08-08

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FLOAT is a free tracker. Add the coins you own, keep photos and certificates with each item, and see a value built from real sales at your item's grade. This page is a public reference; it does not offer, price or sell insurance.