Numismatists are familiar with Augustus Saint-Gaudens’ eagle and double eagle, but his oeuvre included statues, bas-reliefs, medallions, cameos, and works in other media. As a teenager he began his career with an apprenticeship to a cameo-cutter before he left for Paris in 1867. Although he was able to make some money selling cameos in New York City, by his own accounts they did not sell well in Paris, where other artists were more skillful. Saint-Gaudens would soon create works on a grander scale, but his experience with cameo-cutting would come in handy when he was commissioned to design medals and, later, coins.
It is impossible to say which of Saint-Gaudens’ many works was the most important, but certainly his statue of General William Tecumseh Sherman is one of the most lauded, and the figure of Victory (Nike) in the monument would later be used as a model for the double eagle. This statue also brought Saint-Gaudens into contact with Roosevelt, who was vice president at the time, and their collaboration would later result in the beginning of the American coinage renaissance.
Saint-Gaudens wanted his statue of Sherman to be positioned near Grant’s Tomb, which was completed in 1897, for artistic and historical reasons. Roger Burdette (2006) writes, “After a chance meeting on a train returning from the Buffalo Exhibition in May 1901, he sought the intervention of vice-president Theodore Roosevelt in an attempt to secure his preferred location of the statue.”
Although Roosevelt was unsuccessful and the statue was placed at the southeastern corner of New York’s Central Park, he did not forget his encounter with Saint-Gaudens. Less than four years later, Roosevelt would ask Saint-Gaudens to redesign some of the country’s coins. The coins were Saint-Gaudens’ final project, and the 1907 High Relief double eagle was the fitting capstone to the artist’s distinguished career.
The physical perfection of this coin makes one realize why Theodore Roosevelt was so proud of these pieces and why he used them for presentation purposes.
Most 1907 High Reliefs are a pleasure to behold. This one, however, is (even) much better than that!
The NGC population is 20 (two of which have been designated “Star” by NGC) with 5 graded higher.
Listed at $312,000 in the CDN CPG and $290,000 in the NGC price guide.
Offered at $208,100
