Overview of the 1987 Silver American Eagle NGC MS70

The 1987 Silver American Eagle is a one troy ounce coin struck from .999 fine silver and issued by the United States Mint as part of the ongoing American Eagle bullion series. As legal tender carrying a one dollar face value, it carries the full backing of the U.S. federal government, which distinguishes it from privately minted rounds of equivalent silver content. This particular example has been graded MS70 by the Numismatic Guaranty Company, the highest grade on the 70-point Sheldon scale, designating a coin that is perfect in every respect with no post-production imperfections visible under five times magnification. Finding a 1987 Silver Eagle in MS70 is a genuine rarity. The year falls within the early years of the series, a period when the Mint had not yet refined the production and handling practices that would later improve strike consistency and surface quality. NGC-certified MS70 specimens from this year represent a small fraction of total mintage, making this a coin that appeals both to those interested in silver content and to those focused on date-specific numismatic quality.

History and Background

The American Silver Eagle series launched in 1986 following the passage of the Liberty Coin Act, which authorized the United States Mint to produce silver bullion coins using silver drawn from the National Defense Stockpile. The series was designed from the outset to serve both the bullion market and collectors seeking government-issued silver coins with standardized specifications. By 1987, the second full year of production, the Silver Eagle had already established itself as the flagship silver bullion coin of the United States. The early years of the series are of particular interest to date collectors because mintage figures and quality distributions varied considerably before the Mint introduced improved handling protocols. The 1987 issue had a Philadelphia Mint bullion strike with a reported mintage of approximately 11.4 million coins, alongside a San Francisco proof version. While the raw mintage appears substantial, the proportion surviving in a certified MS70 state is extremely small relative to the total, a dynamic that has consistently supported premium pricing for high-grade early-date Eagles.

Design and Aesthetics

The obverse of the Silver American Eagle features Adolph Weinman's full-length Walking Liberty design, originally created for the Walking Liberty Half Dollar series minted from 1916 to 1947. The image depicts Liberty striding forward draped in the American flag, her right arm outstretched and her left arm cradling laurel and oak branches. The composition conveys movement and national identity with a level of artistic depth rarely seen on a mass-produced bullion coin. The reverse was designed by John Mercanti and carries a heraldic eagle with a shield on its chest, holding an olive branch in one talon and arrows in the other. Thirteen stars are arranged above the eagle's head, and the inscriptions include "UNITED STATES OF AMERICA," the denomination "1 DOLLAR," and "1 OZ. FINE SILVER." On an MS70 example, both surfaces exhibit full strikes with no contact marks, no abrasions, and surfaces that display the full luster of freshly struck silver with no compromise to the design's intricate relief.

Authenticity and Product Integrity

NGC is one of the two most widely recognized third-party grading services in the numismatic industry, and an MS70 designation from NGC carries substantial weight in both collector and dealer markets. The grading process involves professional examination under controlled lighting and magnification, and each certified coin is encapsulated in a tamper-evident plastic holder that displays the coin's grade, certification number, and series information. This encapsulation protects the coin's surface integrity while simultaneously serving as a universally recognized authentication credential. We are an authorized dealer for NGC, which supports our ability to offer certified coins with full confidence in their grading provenance. Buyers purchasing through us receive coins that have already passed through an independent authentication process conducted by a recognized third party. The NGC label and serial number can be cross-referenced directly through NGC's online verification database, adding another layer of confirmation that requires no reliance on the seller's representation alone.

Condition and Packaging

MS70, or Mint State Perfect, is the highest grade achievable under the Sheldon numerical system. A coin graded MS70 by NGC shows absolutely no post-production imperfections under five times magnification in any area of the coin's design or field. For an early-date Silver Eagle like the 1987, achieving this grade is genuinely difficult given the handling and storage conditions typical of coins produced in the series' formative years. The NGC holder preserves this condition by permanently sealing the coin in an inert environment that prevents additional handling, toning, or contact damage. Because this coin is graded and encapsulated by NGC, it ships exactly as certified, housed within its original NGC slab. There is no additional packaging reconfiguration for graded coins of this type. The slab itself serves as the primary protective housing, and we take care to ensure each certified coin arrives securely packed to prevent damage during transit.

Pricing and Market Factors

Pricing for an NGC MS70 1987 Silver American Eagle reflects two separate components: the intrinsic silver value derived from one troy ounce of .999 fine silver priced against the current spot market, and a numismatic premium that accounts for the coin's certified perfect condition, its date-specific rarity within the series, and the relatively limited supply of MS70 examples from the early production years. The numismatic premium on certified early-date Silver Eagles in MS70 can be meaningfully higher than what you would typically see on a bullion-grade coin. That premium is driven by real scarcity in the certified population, not marketing positioning. As market conditions shift and NGC population reports evolve, the relationship between spot price and total acquisition cost for this coin will reflect both the underlying silver market and the collector demand for date-specific, top-pop certified American Eagles.

Selling and Liquidity

The American Silver Eagle is the best-selling silver bullion coin in U.S. history, and its recognizability in dealer, auction, and wholesale markets is essentially unmatched among domestic silver products. Certified examples, particularly in MS70, trade regularly through major auction platforms and dealer networks, and buyers familiar with NGC population data can evaluate the relative scarcity of a given date's certified population before making any decision. We operate a two-way market where customers can sell as well as buy, and certified American Eagles are among the products we actively bid on. Understanding where the bid price sits relative to the ask price before purchasing a coin of this type is practical information worth having, and our platform is structured to make that comparison straightforward rather than something you need to research separately.

Why Buy the 1987 Silver American Eagle NGC MS70?

The appeal of this specific coin comes from the intersection of two distinct value drivers: the liquidity and recognition of the Silver Eagle bullion series, and the rarity of a certified-perfect example from one of the program's earliest years. A standard 1987 Silver Eagle in circulated or uncertified condition is a common item. A certified MS70 example is not. The NGC population for this date in this grade is limited, and that scarcity is a matter of public record through NGC's registry. For buyers who want exposure to silver in a format that also carries demonstrable numismatic scarcity, the early-date Silver Eagle MS70 occupies a distinct position in the market. The government backing, standardized weight and purity, and the third-party certification combine to produce a coin that is both tangible silver and an independently verified collector-grade specimen.

Why Buy from Bullion Standard?

We have operated in this market since 2010, and our approach is built around transparency rather than pressure. Pricing is displayed clearly and reflects real market conditions, and our two-way model means we are active on both the buy and sell side of this market rather than treating resale as a separate and difficult conversation. Our authorized dealer relationships with both NGC and PCGS mean that when we offer certified coins, those credentials have institutional grounding behind them. We maintain an A rating with the Better Business Bureau and hold active memberships in the American Numismatic Association and the National Coin and Bullion Association. These affiliations reflect the standards we hold ourselves to, not just in sourcing, but in how we handle every aspect of the buying and selling experience.

Get Near-Spot Pricing with Bullion Standard Pro

Bullion Standard Pro gives members access to live, executable wholesale bid and ask pricing across our catalog, including certified numismatic products like this one. For a coin where the premium component carries real weight in the total acquisition cost, having visibility into how the bid and ask spread behaves in real time is meaningful information rather than a background detail. Pro members can evaluate pricing efficiency and track how the spread on a specific product changes as market conditions and demand shift. The platform also supports real-time portfolio valuation based on current wholesale bid pricing rather than estimated retail figures, giving members a clearer picture of what their holdings are actually worth at any given moment. For collectors and buyers with positions in certified coins, this kind of objective, wholesale-grounded valuation provides a more useful baseline than a static price estimate.

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