Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America, in Congress assembled, That the gold coins of the United States shall contain the following quantities of metal, that is to say: each eagle shall contain two hundred and thirty-two grains of pure gold, and two hundred and fifty-eight grains of standard gold; each half eagle one hundred and sixteen grains of pure gold, and one hundred and twenty-nine grains of standard gold; each quarter eagle shall contain fifty-eight grains of pure gold, and sixty-four and a half grains of standard gold; every such eagle shall be of the value of ten dollars; every such half eagle shall be of the value of five dollars; and every such quarter eagle shall be of the value of two dollars and fifty cents; and the said gold coins shall be receivable in all payments, when of full weight, according to their respective values; and when of less than full weight, at less values, proportioned to their respective actual weights.

1801 Draped Bust Silver Dollar

Statutory Authority: Coinage Act of 1792

Obverse: A right-facing draped bust of Liberty, hair loosely tied with a ribbon and falling in curls at the neck. “LIBERTY” arcs above the portrait; the date appears below. Seven stars flank the bust to the left, six to the right.

Reverse: A heraldic eagle with wings displayed, a shield on its breast, clutching an olive branch in its right talon and a bundle of arrows in its left. A cluster of stars and clouds appears above the eagle’s head. “UNITED STATES OF AMERICA” encircles the design.

Designer: Robert Scot, Chief Engraver of the United States Mint.

Composition: 89.24% silver, 10.76% copper.

Weight: 416 grains (371.25 grains of silver).

The 1801 silver dollar embodies the Coinage Act of 1792 in tangible form. Its obverse and reverse literally satisfy the design mandates outlined by Congress in section 10 of the Act, which provides

And be it further enacted, That, upon the said coins respectively, there shall be the following devices and legends, namely: Upon one side of each of the said coins there shall be an impression emblematic of liberty, with an inscription of the word Liberty, and the year of the coinage; and upon the reverse of each of the gold and silver coins there shall be the figure or representation of an eagle, with this inscription, “United States of America” and upon the reverse of each of the copper coins, there shall be an inscription which shall express the denomination of the piece, namely, cent or half cent, as the case may require.

Furthermore, its physical weight and silver fineness were intentionally engineered to mirror the average Spanish milled dollars then anchoring colonial commerce, aiming to create a stable, universally trusted domestic standard. Rather than a tool of government spending, this coin is a relic of the “Free Coinage” mechanism. A merchant or banker hand-delivered raw silver bullion to the Philadelphia Mint gates, using the institution as a conversion service to transform private wealth into sovereign, circulating legal tender.