1800 Eagle (1800 $10) PCGS AU53. It is lustrous on both sides particularly on the top of Libertys hat, the back of her hair, and the upper left stars. On the reverse the luster is on the eagles wings, the top of his head, the stars and the clouds above, and the arrows. There are a few tiny contact marks on Libertys face and neck, but the reverse is free of them. There is a very small amount of wear on only the highest points of both sides of the coin, which accounts for its AU grade, which should probably be five or so points higher. The coin is fully struck on both sides. We see every detail of Libertys hair, every feather on the eagle, and every line in the shield. There is an obverse die break that runs through the tops of the letters in LIBERTY and the stars. This die break probably led to a premature die failure, which may account for the low mintage of 5,999 for this date.

The design shows Liberty facing right with the date below and slightly to the left. Above the date on the left side are eight stars followed by LIBERTY and the five remaining stars. Liberty is wearing a large, soft cap, and her hair flows down her side and back and shows on her forehead. The bust is strangely draped for a classical design, which was Scotts goal. The reverse shows the heraldic eagle taken from the Great Seal of the United States. The legend UNITED STATES OF AMERICA surrounds the design. A banner from wing to wing has the motto E PLURIBUS UNUM. There are thirteen stars between the eagles head and the clouds above. In its claws the eagle holds the traditional arrows and olive branch, symbolic of war as well as peace. The shield, with its vertical and horizontal stripes, represents the Union.

Scotts obverse design was probably taken from a Roman engraving that copied a Greek goddess. Libertys cap was certainly not a Phrygian or liberty cap. The liberty cap, emblematic of freedom, was worn by freed slaves and freed gladiators in Roman times. It was a close fitting cap used to cover a shorn head, which was one of the way slaves were identified. The oversized cap worn by Liberty has been called a turban, and the design has been called the Turban Head because of it. On the heraldic reverse of the coin, Scott mixed up the positions of the arrows and olive branch of peace. The arrows held in the wrong claw signify defiant militarism. Either Scott made an error copying the image of the Great Seal, or he deliberately changed the symbolism in keeping with a potential political mistake.

In 1795, the eagle was established as the countrys monetary unit. Like the European coinage of the time, it showed no denomination and was valued by its weight and fineness. However, it was inconvenient for international trade because it was too large for small transactions and too small for large sums because of difficulty of transportation and storage. Also during the period of time that these type I and II eagles were in use, so was coinage of other countries. Coins from Britain and France were legal tender in the United States, and they were more familiar to most people using high denomination coins at that time. During the entire time of its use, from 1795 to 1933, the eagle mintage was about three quarters of the half eagle mintage.