So only a few of these coins escaped and only one is actually legal to own by any private citizen,” Vagi explained. “It is no longer illegal, but at the time it was, and the US mint had struck these coins, just like it struck them in previous years, and then the word comes down that no more. The 1933 Double Eagle was minted before the Reserve Act of 1934 and most gold coins were returned and melted down by the end of that year. People who owned gold coins had to return them and exchange them for another type of currency.
Additionally, the United States Congress passed the Gold Reserve Act of 1934, which made the circulation and possession of gold coins illegal, with the exception of those in the hands of collectors. Roosevelt issued an executive order limiting the possession of gold coins worth more than $100. In general, you could maintain small bits of gold, but general gold ownership was outlawed,” Vagi said.
And this is right at the point when private ownership of gold became outlawed in the United States.
“The Double Eagle, which is a $20 gold piece, was minted in 1933. Get Southern California news, weather forecasts and entertainment stories to your inbox.
