The 1987 Constitution $5 Gold Coin was issued along with a silver dollar coin to mark the 200th anniversary of the United States Constitution. Sales of the gold coins came close to attaining the maximum authorized mintage of one million pieces.
The obverse design of the coin featured a stylized flying eagle holding a quill pen. Rays emanate from behind the eagle. The inscriptions “Liberty” and “In God We Trust” appear to the left, with the date “1987″ below. On the reverse of the coin is a quill pen positioned horizontally, with “We The People” written in calligraphy and an arc of thirteen stars. Inscriptions read “United States of America”, “Bicentennial of the Constitution”, “Sept 17 1787″, “E Pluribus Unum”, and “Five Dollars”. The obverse and reverse were designed by Marcel Jovine.
Both the proof and uncirculated versions of the Constitution Gold Coins were struck at the West Point Mint. The coins were offered for sale individually or as part of a two coin set, which included the corresponding silver dollar, or a four coin set, which included the $5 gold and $1 silver coins in proof and uncirculated finishes.
Across all ordering options, the uncirculated version had a mintage of 214,225 and the proof version had a mintage of 651,659. Similar to other gold commemoratives issued during this era, the relatively high mintages yield a plentiful supply for present day collectors. The coins are generally priced around the value of their precious metal content.
Coin Specifications
Designer: Marcel Jovine
Weight: 8.3590 g
Composition: 90% gold (0.242 ounces of gold)
Diameter: 21.6 mm
Maximum Authorized Mintage: 1,000,000
1987-W Uncirculated Constitution $5 Gold
Pre-Issue Price: $195.00
Regular Price: $215.00
Final Mintage: 214,225
1987-W Proof Constitution $5 Gold
Pre-Issue Price: $200.00
Regular Price: $225.00
Final Mintage: 651,659
Other 1987 Constitution Commemorative Coins
The obverse design of the silver dollar depicted sheets of parchment and a quill pen. The first three words of the U.S. Constitution “We the People” are featured centrally. Inscriptions around the outer edge of the coin include “The U.S. Constitution 200th Anniversary”, “Liberty”, and the dates “1787″ and “1987″. Above the parchment are the words “In God We Trust” with an arrangement of thirteen stars below.
On the reverse of the coin are 13 diverse people intended to represent the wide cultural and social spectrum of the United States. The inscriptions around the edge include “E Pluribus Unum” and “United States of America”. The denomination is expressed curiously as “Dollar 1″. Both the obverse and reverse were designed by Patricia Lewis Verani.
The Constitution Silver Dollar had a maximum authorized mintage of 10 million coins, across proof and uncirculated versions. The proof coins were minted at the San Francisco Mint and the uncirculated coins were minted at the Philadelphia Mint. The silver dollars were offered individually, or as part of a two coin or four coin set. Across all options and versions, sales exceeded 3 million coins, falling short of the maximum but well above the sales levels for later modern commemoratives.
Coin Specifications
Designer: Patricia Lewis Verani
Weight: 26.7300 g
Composition: 90% Silver (0.7736 ounces of silver)
Diameter: 38.1 mm
Maximum Authorized Mintage: 10,000,000
1987-P Uncirculated Constitution Silver Dollar
Pre-Issue Price: $22.50
Regular Price: $26.00
Final Mintage: 451,629
1987-S Proof Constitution Silver Dollar
Pre-Issue Price: $24.00
Regular Price: $28.00
Final Mintage: 2,747,116
Other 1987 Constitution Commemorative Coins
