Saint-Gaudens One Cent Coin Tribute – 2 oz Silver
What might an American cent have looked like in the hands of Augustus Saint-Gaudens? This 2 troy ounce .999 fine silver tribute explores that unrealized chapter in coin design, pairing a classical Liberty portrait with a wreath-and-fasces reverse in a substantial 39 mm format.
A Cent That Never Entered Circulation
President Theodore Roosevelt’s collaboration with Saint-Gaudens brought a sculptor’s ambition to American coinage. The artist’s work on the $10 eagle and $20 double eagle became famous, but his plans also included the one-cent piece. The Metropolitan Museum of Art records that the cent models prepared in 1905–1906 were never minted.
Saint-Gaudens died in August 1907. His surviving coin models preserve the experimentation behind these designs, including studies for the cent held at Saint-Gaudens National Historical Park. This modern tribute gives collectors a way to appreciate a design concept that remained outside everyday American pocket change.
Obverse Design
A left-facing head of Liberty wears a leafy crown, with carefully modeled hair gathered behind her head. Thirteen stars arch over the portrait, and “LIBERTY” fills the lower field. The open space around the profile emphasizes the sculptural quality of the face and the finely worked leaves.
Reverse Design
A laurel wreath and fasces frame the reverse lettering. “UNITED STATES OF AMERICA” surrounds the central “TWO TROY OUNCES” inscription, with the hallmark below and the date at the bottom. The weight wording identifies this piece as a modern silver tribute to a proposed cent design, rather than a one-cent denomination.
Specifications
- Weight: 2.00 troy ounces
- Metal: .999 fine silver
- Diameter: 39 mm
- Thickness: approximately 6 mm
- Edge: Reeded
- Finish: Brilliant Uncirculated
Explore more designs in our silver round collection.