1. 2000 Dollar Coin P
2. 2000 Dollar Coin Errors
3. 2000 P Sacagawea Dollar Error
4. Gold Colored Sacagawea Dollar Worth
5. Sacagawea Dollar Coin Value Chart

Image © Ken Potter 2005 / Coin courtesy of Gary Burger

The year 2000 not only introduced the new millennium but it was also the 1st year of issuance of America's newest dollar, introducing the Golden Sacagawea Dollar. This is a 2000 Uncirculated, Philadelphia Mint Sacagawea coin. Minted directly from the Philadelphia Mint in the year 2000. The Sacagawea dollar (also known as the 'golden dollar') is a United States dollar coin first minted in 2000, although not minted for general circulation between 2002 to 2008 and again from 2012 onward due to its general unpopularity with the public and low business demand for the coin.

2000 Dollar Coin P

Q: Eric L., posed a question about the so-called “Wounded Eagle,” 2000-P Sacagawea dollar. He says: “I bought about 200 rolls of the new [2000-P] Sacagawea coins from my local WalMart during their promotion [that year] in a search to find a “wounded-eagle” that matched the snake-like pattern of a photo I spotted online somewhere. I turned a few hundred with “spears” back into the bank looking for a wounded eagle … is there any reference photos on the types of “wounds” that can be certified as “wounded eagles.”

A: these are not a “wound” nor are they a “spear” but rather a die gouge that runs through the body of the eagle just below the breast. There is only one die gouge variety that I know of that is “officially” recognized by the authors of the Cherrypickers’ Guide To Rare Die Varieties, Bill Fivaz and J.T. Stanton. They refer to it as “Reverse Die Aberrations” and make a special note that “some collectors have nicknamed this the ‘speared eagle’.” In actuality, “wounded eagle” was and continues to be the far more popular nickname. It is frequently certified by some of the grading companies as a “wounded eagle.”

Many in the organized error-variety hobby are against the use of nicknames such as either cited here and prefer to see them referred to simply as “die gouges” (or perhaps the closely related “die dents” which this may actually be) or at the very least as something like “Wounded Eagle–Die Gouge.” Whatever your position, there is no question that this one is unusual and kind of neat! I own one that fellow Michigander, Gary Burger gave me and I enjoy looking at it on the rare occasions that I get a change to look at any of my own coins 🙂

2000 Dollar Coin Errors

—Ken Potter

2000 P Sacagawea Dollar Error

The Sacagawea Dollar was introduced in 2000 as the new circulating dollar coin of the United States of America. During the first two years of issue, the coins were produced in large numbers amidst optimistic expectations for widespread circulation. When the public failed to embrace the coins, they were only struck in limited numbers for numismatic purposes. Starting in 2009, an annually rotating reverse design was adopted to accompany the familiar obverse design.

Gold Colored Sacagawea Dollar Worth

The series was originally authorized under the “United States Dollar Coin Act of 1997” signed into law by President Clinton in December 1997. The visual appearance of the coins included within the legislation was the following: “The dollar coin shall be golden in color, have a distinctive edge, have tactile and visual features that make the denomination of the coin readily discernible…”

These stipulations seemed aimed at correcting the perceived shortcomings of the previous dollar coin series, which had been easily confused with other denominations. The golden color was achieved by using an alloy of managanese brass for the outer layer of the coin. The edge was plain, as opposed to reeded, and the coins had a wide rim around the circumference.

Glenna Goodacre created the obverse design for the Sacagawea Dollar. It features a portrait of Sacagawea, the Shoshone woman who accompanied Lewis and Clark on their expedition from 1804 to 1806. She carries her newborn son, Jean Baptiste Charbonneau, on her back. Since no contemporary image of Sacagawea exists, Goodacre used a 22 year old Shoshone woman named Randy’L He-Dow Teton as a model for the coin. To complete the obverse, the inscription LIBERTY appears above, with IN GOD WE TRUST in the left field, and the date and mint mark in the right field.

The original reverse of the coin portrays an eagle in flight designed by Thomas D. Rogers Sr. There are 17 stars around the eagle, representing each state in the Union at the time of the Lewis and Clark expedition. Above the eagle’s head is the motto IN GOD WE TRUST, with UNITED STATES OF AMERICA above, and ONE DOLLAR below.

Sacagawea Dollar Coin Value Chart

From 2009 onwards, the obverse design of the coin was slightly altered by moving the date and mint mark to the edge of the coin, along with the motto E PLURIBUS UNUM. The reverse of the coin began to carry annually rotating designs celebrating the contributions and accomplishments of Native Americans. For this second stage of the series, mintages were initially higher due to production requirements within the authorizing legislation, however from 2012 onwards the coins have only been produced for distribution to collectors.