In the first part of this article, I discussed the ins and outs of assembling a year set of Liberty Head eagles from 1838 through 1866. In case you’ve already forgotten the premise, it’s that a collector can purchase one example of each year that this denomination/type was produced in order to save money and still be an active participant in this very interesting (and very long-lived) series.   
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For most collectors, assembling a comlete set of Liberty Head eagles is a daunting task, to say the least. There are 184 different issues (including major varieties) struck from 1838 to 1907. While none of these individual coins is impossible to locate, many are rare to very rare and nearly every issue struck prior to 1878 is rare in higher grades and quite expensive.   
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In a recent blog, I mentioned the fact that the entry level to become a buyer of interesting United States gold coins was a much lower barrier than many new collectors realize. I mentioned some general issues and types that could be found in the $1,000-2,500 range that I felt were interesting and good values. I’d like to expand this idea and discuss 20 specific rare coins that can be purchased for $5,000 or less. 1. 1865 Gold Dollar.   
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The 1880-CC is one of only five eagles produced at the Carson City mint in this decade. It is scarcer than the 1881-CC and the 1884-CC but easier to locate than the 1882-CC and 1883-CC. This date is available in the lower grades but it is rare in AU58 and very rare in Uncirculated with around ten known. The present example is choice and original and one of the more “perfect” sliders that I have seen.   
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Lost in the hubbub surrounding the recently-concluded Central States coin show and the Heritage auction held with it was a sale that I think ranks as one of the more remarkable in the rare gold coin market all year. The coin of which I speak is an 1862-S eagle graded MS61 by NGC. Unless you are pretty knowledgeable, this coin probably doesn’t seem like anything too impressive.   
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The first part of this article, published at the end of December 2010, discussed some of my favorite little-known United States gold coins in the dollar, quarter eagle and three dollar denominations. In the second and final part of this series, I’m going to look at some of the more interesting half eagles, eagles and double eagles that I have seen or sold over the course of the last two decades as a specialist in United States gold coinage.   
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