1911-D Saint Gaudens Double Eagle (1911-D $20 St. Gaudens) NGC MS65 CAC. This gem 1911-D Double Eagle glows with subdued mint luster. The coin is graded MS65, which is confirmed by CAC. A few light wispy marks keep it from an even higher mint state grade. The strike is average on the obverse with some central weakness shown and strong on the reverse. All of the feathers and rays are clear and sharp.

The 1911 double eagle is a Motto Added type. In 1908 IN GOD WE TRUST was added to the reverse above the rising sun. President Theodore Roosevelt had been opposed to the motto because he felt that considering how a coin could be used, it was blasphemous to have the name of God on it. Coins could fall on the floor and be stepped on. They could be used for gambling or prostitution. Augustus Saint-Gaudens, the designer, agreed and the two of them planned the double eagle with no motto. In fact the mintages of the first year and half of the second had no motto. However, Congress disagreed and ordered all coins to adhere to the law that was passed in 1865. In the early part of the Twentieth Century, those who opposed having Gods name on the coinage were probably thought of as anarchists and/or Bolsheviks. Of course, Congress was more concerned with public opinion than the First Amendments principle of separation of church and state, and so the motto was mandated.

We saw an analogous situation when a number of 2007 George Washington dollar coins were issued without the edge lettering that contained the motto. There was such a complaint that the coins were godless. To remedy this terrible situation, the coins in the series were redesigned to have the motto on the reverse of the coin under the portrait of the president so it could not be accidentally omitted.