2000 P Sacagawea Dollar Value: How Much Is It Worth Today?

Most coin varieties do not deserve an article of their own. But the 2000 P Sacagawea Dollar obviously is not “most coin varieties”. If you want to learn what makes this variety so special and how it got a separate article, keep on reading.

Besides that, expect expending your coin knowledge with info about 2000 P Sacagawea value, history, mintages, and much more! Let’s go!

2000 P Sacagawea Dollar Value Chart
Condition	2000 P Sacagawea Dollar	2000 P Cherios Sacagawea Dollar	2000 P Goodacre Sacagawea Dollar
AU 50	$1.01	N/A	N/A
MS 65	$6.84	$4,052	$630

 

2000 P Sacagawea Dollar Value

History

The history of almost any coin starts with the coin that was used before it. The one American people used before the Sacagawea Dollar was Susan B. Anthony Dollar.

Even though Susan B. Anthony Dollar was unpopular amongst the general population when it first appeared in 1979, by the 90s, it became quite utilized in vending machines and mass transit systems.

However, because the coin was not minted since 1981, its supply became scarce, which is why there were several bills proposed to restart its minting. In addition to that, legislation that asked for the redesigning of the Anthony Dollar appeared.

US Treasury did both. First, they resumed the minting process of Susan B. Anthony Dollar for a year in 1999 to keep up with the demand until new coins were ready for circulation. Then, in 2000 they released new dollar coins that are called Sacagawea.

Design Process

The official date when the search for the new design started is 20 March 1997, as that is the day when Republican Representative Michael Castle of Delaware introduced a bill in which he requested that the Statue of Liberty appears on the new dollar coin.

In 1998, Treasury Secretary Robert Rubin formed a Dollar Coin Design Advisory Committee, which had nine members, and tasked it with finding an appropriate design for the new coin.

One of his instructions regarding the new design was that it should feature one or more women that are not alive anymore.

The Dollar Coin Design Advisory Committee got a lot of proposals by phone, mail, and email. In June 1998, they also got together to listen to proposals given by the public.

After going through all these submissions, they recommended using a depiction of Sacagawea, a member of the Shoshone tribe who was the guide in the Lewis and Clark Expedition.

This expedition, also known Corps of Discovery Expedition, was a journey undertaken by the United States to traverse the recently obtained western region of the country following the Louisiana Purchase.

The aforementioned Republican Representative Michael Castle opposed their recommendation because, according to him, the new coin should have a design that would make it popular with the general public.

There was even a poll conducted on his behalf, in which people were asked about their preferences regarding the new design. Only 27% wanted Sacagawea to appear on the coin, while almost two-thirds voted for the Statue of Liberty.

Since you are reading an article called 2000 P Sacagawea Dollar, you already know Castel’s attempts to get the Statue of Liberty on the dollar coin did not bear any fruit.

So, after it was decided that a depiction of Sacagawea would grace the new coin, 23 artists were asked to submit their proposals.

They were given some guidelines, of which the most important ones are that Sacagawea should appear on the obverse, eagle, a symbol of peace and freedom on the reverse, and that they avoid creating an image of a European face wearing a Native American headwear.

Out of 23 submitted coin design proposals, US Mint chose six obverses and seven reverses. They then reduced that to three obverses and four reverses after further consideration and polling people.

Lastly, Mint sent these design submissions to the United States Commission of Fıne arts, which would make the final decision.

The commission selected a design by sculptor Glenna Goodacre that included Sacagawea and her baby son on the obverse and a flying eagle reverse designed by Mint’s own sculptor and engraver Thomas D. Rogers.

2000 P Sacagawea Dollar Obverse

2000 P Sacagawea Dollar obverse features a portrait of Sacagawea in Hidatsa custom, looking back with her son on her back.

Obverse designer Glenna Goodacre selected Randy’L He-dow Teton as the person who would pose as Sacagawea. The depiction of Sacagawea’s son, Jean Baptiste Charbonneau, was modeled after one-year-old Adam Scholz.

Running along the top periphery is the inscription LIBERTY, while the official motto of the United States of America, IN GOD WE TRUST, is located on the obverse’s left side next to Sacagawea’s hair.

The mint year, 2000, appears in the lower right section to the right of Sacagawea’s shoulder. The mint mark P, which stands for Philadelphia, is just beneath it.

Lastly, the designer’s initials, GG, are hidden in Sacagawea’s shawl in the bottom center part of the obverse.

2000 P Sacagawea Dollar Reverse

Besides the eagle, the reverse of the 2000 P Sacagawea Dollar features the writing UNITED STATES OF AMERICA around the top rim and the denomination ONE DOLLAR around the bottom rim.

The motto E PLURIBUS UNUM which translates to “Out of many, one” from Latin, shares the center stage with the eagle.

An interesting detail is the 17 stars that encircle the eagle. 17 was the number of states that were part of the Union during the 1804 Lewis and Clark expedition.

Finally, the initials of the designer, Thomas D. Rogers, can be seen on the right beneath the eagle’s tail and next to the R part of the denomination.

2000 P Sacagawea Dollar Specifications

2000 P Sacagawea Dollar weighs 0.285 ounces (8.1 g), has a diameter of 1.043 inches (26.49 mm), a thickness of 0.079 inches (2.00 mm), and a round edge.

The composition of this 100-cent coin is quite interesting since it consists of 88.5% Cu, 6% Zn, 3.5% Mn, and 2% Ni.

2000 P Sacagawea Dollar Value

The huge demand for dollar coins in the 90s’ led the US Mint to believe that people would continue using them in huge amounts in the 2000s, which is why they produced a whopping 767,140,000 2000 P Sacagawea Dollars.

However, the Sacagawea did not appear in the frequency the US Mint hoped for in part due to the design of the obverse. If the Republican Representative Michael Castle, who advocated for the Statue of Liberty design, is reading this, he is probably saying, “I told you so”.

Anyway, the huge mintage meant that the 2000 P Sacagawea Dollars were not that expensive. For example, in About Uncirculated grade, these goldy coins are worth around their face value; 2000 P Sacagawea Dollars in Mint State 65 are worth almost seven dollars.

Do not despair, though. If you have a specimen that is MS68 or 67, you could earn a lot of money since when we look at some auctions, we find that they are worth thousands of dollars.

Furthermore, you can make tens of thousands because some of the most expensive 2000 P Sacagawea Dollars were sold for amounts such as $117,500, $88,125, $56,350, etc.

The coin’s condition is quite important, but factors such as timing, location, and auction firm also matter.

2000 P Cheerios Sacagawea Dollar Value

In hopes of encouraging the US population to use certain coins, the US Mint started collaborating with some commercial businesses. One of them was General Mills, a manufacturer of breakfast cereals and other foods.

As a part of the collaboration, General Mills packaged 5,500 2000 P Sacagawea Dollars in some of their Cheerios cereal boxes and marketed this collaboration as a treasure hunt.

In 2005, a coin collector named Pat Braddick noticed that the 2000 P Sacagawea Dollars from the Cheerios boxes have a different design from the normal 2000 P Sacagawea Dollars since the eagle’s feathers on their reverse are enhanced.

Although a team of experts opened what is thought to be a sealed and authentic box of Cheerios and found a 2000 P Sacagawea Dollar without the enhanced feathers, the US Mint denied this with a statement that said that General Mills was sent 5,500 2000 P Sacagawea Dollars with accentuated feathers.

Whatever the truth, it is needless to say that 2000 P Cheerios Sacagawea golden dollar coins are really valuable. The lowest price one was ever sold for is $2,160; in Mint State 65, they are worth around $4,000.

Next time you see a 2000 P Cheerios Sacagawea, please check the eagle’s feathers!

2000 P Goodacre Sacagawea Dollar Value

Glenna Goodacre was not just an artist but a businesswoman as well.

The prize for winning the coin design competition was $5,000, which she requested be given to her in the form of five thousand 2000 P Cheerios Sacagawea Dollars. The US Mint struck these dollars on burnished planchets, giving them a special proof-like or “Specimen” look.

After receiving the coins, Goodacre auctioned and sold 3,000 of them for a price of 200 dollars per specimen. For those of you who are too lazy to do the math – that is 600,000 dollars. Talk about making a profit!

She also sold the remaining coins to Jeff Garrett, a coin dealer who owns Mid-American Rare Coin Gallery in Lexington, Kentucky.

By the way, Garret would later go on to distribute those coins to the market via different coin dealers.

The 2000 P Goodacre Presentation Sacagawea Dollar are not as expensive as the Cheerios variety, but they are also not anywhere close to cheap. Those in Mint State 65 cost $630, for example. In some recent auctions, in 2020, some of them were sold in a price range from $3,000 to $4,500.

2000 P Sacagawea Dollar Grading

We want you to be rich, so we have included a video that talks about the value of 2000 P Sacagawea Dollars. Even if it turns out the one you own is not particularly expensive, you will have watched a cool video and learned something new!

2000 P Sacagawea Dollar List Of Errors

Technically speaking, 2000 P Cheerios and Goodacre Sacagawea Dollars could be talked about in this section since they have features that deviate from the original design.

However, those “errors” were made on purpose, which is not the case with true errors. So, here we will discuss those mistakes that were never meant to happen.

2000 P Sacagawea Dollar Wounded Eagle Error

An interesting name for an interesting mint error! As you know, the 2000 P Sacagawea Dollar features a bald eagle in the middle of a flight.

Some of the eagles on these golden dollars seem to be cut across the torso and the left wing, which explains the reason behind this mint error’s name. In September 2017, a specimen in Mint State 68 with this mistake was purchased for $5,160 at Long Beach Expo U.S. Coins Signature Auction.

2000 P Sacagawea Dollar Multi-Struck Obverse Split Die

The other fascinating error we will talk about can be found on the obverse side of the coin. Due to the high pressure under which coin design is transferred onto the planchets, the planchets are known to occasionally shatter to pieces.

However, here the pressure was not that high to cause shattering, but it did do enough damage to create radial cracks, which are most visible at 1 o’clock and 5 o’clock. Since the latter crack is quite deep, it prevented the coin from being ejected from the die.

The coin was struck repeatedly without any new planchets being fed in, leading to the formation of an obverse die cap. As a result, the obverse rim is uniformly high and wraps around the obverse die.

2000 P Sacagawea Dollar FAQ

Is a 2000 P Sacagawea Dollar worth anything?

If by anything you define any amount larger than zero cents, then yes. If you define it as a substantial amount, then it depends on the mint condition of the coin.

In lower grades, this type of dollar is worth its face value, while the MS65 brings $6.84. The value of 2000 P Sacagawea Dollars that are graded higher than is usually in the hundreds or even thousands.

The coin’s melt value is 6 cents.

What makes the 2000 P Sacagawea coin rare?

The 2000 P Sacagawea coins from the regular strike are not rare since there are more than 750 million copies of them. The rare 2000 P Sacagawea Dollars are the Cheerios variety, of which there are only 5,500 specimens, and the Goodacre variety, of which there is even less 5,000.

As is the case with most coins, those that feature a mint error are also pretty rare, so watch out for that as well.