2023 Gold American Eagle Proof 70 Set

Highlights:

• 2023 Gold American Eagle 4-coin set (1 oz, 1/2 oz, 1/4 oz, and 1/10 oz)
• Mirror-like finish
• Independently graded in perfect Proof 70 by NGC
• Obverse: Lady Liberty walking with a torch and olive branch - design based off the 1907 Saint-Gaudens
• Reverse: A striking close-up portrait of an American eagle (Design updated in 2021)
• Ed Moy Signature Series with hand-signed label

The 2023 Gold American Eagle Set is the third year with the updated reverse design created by U.S. Mint Artistic Infusion Program member Jennie Norris,. It features a striking close-up portrait of an American eagle – a starkly different take on the eagle concept than Busiek’s familial scene. To inspire her concept, Norris drew on her experience as a volunteer raptor handler and her “deep connection with wildlife,” the Mint noted in a press release last year. The artist elaborated, remarking that, “The American Eagle is such a noble bird. I was hoping to capture the intensity of his stare through the close cropping. His gaze speaks of pride and wisdom passed down through generations of time.”

While Norris’s eagle image is not depicted with such overt movement as Busiek’s design, which showed an in-flight eagle and two other eagles huddled together in a nest below, this second motif is somehow still quite dynamic. The captivating gaze of the mighty bird does indeed leave the viewer with the impression of a living, breathing creature, thanks to the design’s impressive and life-like detail.

The new eagle portrait is surrounded by the standard Gold American Eagle reverse inscriptions – "UNITED STATES OF AMERICA" to the top, mirrored by the coin’s face value and weight and finesse of its gold contents to the bottom (specific to each of the four individual denominations). A set of three five-point stars appear on both the right and left edges of the coin’s reverse design, separating the inscriptions seen along the top and bottom. Above the bird’s head appear the motto of the Seal of the United States, “E PLURIBUS UNUM” – meaning, “Out of many, one” – and the nation’s motto, “IN GOD WE TRUST,” inscribed on two lines. The designer’s initials appear under the eagle’s neck, while the sculptor’s initials appear just above.

The coin's obverse continues to bear a replica of Augustus Saint-Gaudens’ full-length depiction of Lady Liberty that first appeared on the U.S. $20 gold double eagle coin in 1907. The image shows a dynamic image of Liberty walking forward in full stride, hair and dress billowing behind her in the wind. She holds a torch high into the air with her right hand and grasps an olive branch in her left hand. The U.S. Capitol building appears in the distance behind her while a beaming sun rises over the horizon.