The rarest regular-issue US coin, gold or otherwise, will be appearing alongside the 1913 "Olsen" Liberty - often referred to as 'the most famous American coin in existence' - at Heritage Auctions' Florida United Numismatics (or FUN) auction on January 6-10.
1927-D double eagles have been responsible for many record-shattering performances in the decades after they first appeared in the numismatic spotlight during the 1940s.
And the 1927-D Saint-Gaudens double eagle, MS66 PCGS is anticipated to continue that tradition at Heritage.
Bids on the coin currently stand at $1.1m, with 19 days left for absentee online bidders to get involved.
Consigned from the Ralph P Muller Collection, the 1927-D Saint-Gaudens is one of the most important, not to mention highest graded, surviving examples of its kind.
Though 180,000 of the coins were struck, only a handful remain today. Just a few pieces ever left the mint, and the rest were melted down at the command of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt.
The Muller specimen, with a certified grade of MS66, is one of two 1927-Ds regarded as the second finest known example.
 The 1927-D Saint-Gaudens double eagle, MS66 PCGS |
"One of the first things collectors of Saint-Gaudens double eagles will learn is that the mintages for later dates are basically meaningless," said Greg Rohan, President of Heritage Auction Galleries.
"The real question is not how many were made, but how many survived. In the case of the 1927-D, our research has identified only 13 distinct examples."
The MS67 PCGS specimen, from the Phillip H Morse Collection of Saint-Gaudens Coinage, brought $1,897,500 when it was offered at Heritage in 2005.
A couple of years ago, that price was the fourth all-time highest paid for a US coin at public auction - behind the famous 1933 Saint-Gaudens twenty; the Childs 1804 Original silver dollar; and a 1907 Ultra High Relief, Lettered Edge double eagle, PR69 PCGS, also from the Morse Collection.
Today, the Morse 1927-D is considered the seventh highest.
"With the quality of the coins in the Ralph P Muller collection, we expect strong bidding interest, especially on the 1927-D. That coin should pass the million-dollar mark without hesitation," said Rohan.
The FUN auction takes place at the Orange County Convention Center, Florida, US. As always with Heritage, live online bidding is currently open.
In the mean time, if you can't wait until January, then Paul Fraser Collectibles has an assorted list of rare and valuable coins which are currently available on the market.
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