1856-S Double Eagle - 1856-S $20 PCGS AU55 CAC. Fresh PQ. Type 1 Double Eagle. This fresh, Choice About Uncirculated, Western branch mint, 1856-S Double Eagle is a mixture of light and dark orange gold with highlights of mint luster within the devices. The colors show the coins authenticity. The surfaces are clean for the grade with no notable abrasion marks or other distractions. The strike is strong with full details on the centers of the stars and the design details of the reverse, especially the eagle. The Secure designation attests to the coins authenticity and originality. The CAC sticker indicates that the coin is a premium quality piece that fully merits the grade given.

James B. Longacre designed the Type 1 double eagle. It shows a Liberty head facing left, wearing coronet inscribed LIBERTY. Her hair is tightly tied in the back with two loose curls hanging down her neck to the end of the truncation. She is surrounded by thirteen six-pointed stars with the date below. Dentils are near the edge on both sides of the coin. The reverse shows a heraldic eagle with elaborate ribbons on both sides of the shield extending from the top corner down to the eagles tail feathers. The ribbons are inscribed, on the left E PLURIBUS and UNUM on the right. The ribbons were added to the design to symbolize the denomination since this was the first twenty dollar coin. There is an oval of thirteen stars above the eagles head and an arc of rays from wing tip to wing tip behind the upper half of the oval. UNITED STATES OF AMERICA is in an arc above the eagle, and the denomination TWENTY D. is below. The mintmark is between the tail feathers and the N of TWENTY.

Later a Type 2 was created by adding the motto IN GOD WE TRUST to the oval of stars on the reverse. For Type 3 the denomination was changed to read TWENTY DOLLARS.

In 1844 Longacre was appointed Mint Engraver through the influence of Senator John C. Calhoun of South Carolina. After overcoming opposition by the Chief Coiner, Franklin Peale, who was fearful that the new Engraver would interfere with his illegal medal manufacturing business using the Mint facilities, Longacre did well. He was responsible for creating many new designs including the Indian Head cent, the two-cent piece, the Shield nickel, the Liberty Head gold dollar, the Indian Princess gold dollar, the three-dollar gold piece, and the Liberty Head double eagle.

The San Francisco Mint opened in 1854 because of the need to coin gold resulting from the California Gold Rush. In the West there was an abundance of gold bullion, nuggets and dust; however, there was also an acute shortage of circulating coinage. Congress authorized this mint to relieve the shortage and coin silver and gold and because transportation of bullion to Philadelphia was time consuming and hazardous. Because of its proximity to the Gold Rush area, San Francisco was chosen as the site of the new mint.  In 1874 it moved into a new building called the Old United States Mint or the Granite Lady. It is one of the few structures that survived the earthquake of 1906. It remained in service as a mint until 1938, when the present facility opened.

In its population report, as of October 2013, CAC has confirmed 7 1856-S double eagles at the AU55 grade level. Less than 2% of all 1856-S double eagles certified by PCGS and NGC have received CAC stickers.