DALLAS – An 1861 $20 Paquet, with a PCGS grade of MS67 PCGS CAC sold for $7.2 million to lead Heritage Auctions’ ANA WFOM US Coins Signature Auction event August 18-22. This example of the 1861 Paquet Reverse double eagle, one of the rarest coins in American numismatics, stands at the absolute pinnacle of rarity and exquisite condition. The issue has been a rarity since the day it was struck and is only two examples – and the better example of the two – known to collectors today.

The other known Paquet $20 gold coin was sold by Heritage Auctions in August, 2014, when it brought $1,645,000.

The Paquet double eagle coin was minted at just two US Mints: Philadelphia and San Francisco, with slight discrepancies between the two mints. According to the auction catalog, mint engraver Anthony C. Paquet, was born on December 5, 1814, in Hamburg, Germany, and emigrated to the United States in October 1848. He worked in both New York and Philadelphia from 1850 to 1857, and at the Philadelphia Mint exclusively from 1857 to 1864. While at the mint, he created several patterns in addition to the 1861 double eagles he is most famous for, including dies for the first Congressional Medal of Honor and Indian Peace medals for Presidents Johnson and Grant.

The final result was the most ever paid for a US $20 Liberty gold coin.