Today is the birthday of science fiction author Harry Harrison, who is best known for his Deathworld trilogy. (He was born in 1920 and died in 2012.)
On March 12, 1850, the first U.S. $20 gold piece was issued. The current bullion (melt) value of a $20 gold piece (not even considering any numismatic value) is about $1,185. Lesson learned: Trust gold, not paper.
It’s not that the value of gold has INCREASED, it’s that the value of the fiat paper dollar has DECREASED.
I read several of HH’s earlier books, a couple in The Stainless Steel Rat series and West of Eden (I may still have that one in my dusty archives).
According to Wikipedia the Liberty Head/Double Eagle weighs 1.0750 troy ounces. Being 90% gold, its gold content is 0.9675 troy ounce. So, its value is 0.9675 x $1320 (today’s gold spot value) = $1277.10.
Here is a site that lists gold coin composition, weight and melt value:
https://www.ngccoin.com/price-guide/coin-melt-values.aspx?MeltCategoryID=1&BaseMetal=US-Gold-Coin