The 1862 $20 double eagle often displays a softness to the majority of Liberty's hair elements on the obverse, though the reverse remains moderately sharp. The natural luster is generally frosty, with prooflike reflectivity evident on some higher grade examples. Fewer than 200 pieces survive from this low-mintage issue out of Philadelphia, the majority of which can be found in VF and EF grades. It becomes very scarce in AU, at which level just about three dozen coins are thought to exist. An estimated 20 to 30 Mint State coins are known, the finest of these being a single MS-64 certified by NGC. About a third of the original Proof mintage of 35 pieces is thought to remain, with a Proof-65+ Deep Cameo (PCGS) from the Loewinger Collection ranking as the finest known.

We wrote the following in our April 2022 Auction Catalog, saying: "After striking a record total of 2,976,453 circulation strikes in 1861, the Philadelphia Mint delivered just 92,133 double eagles for commerce in 1862. This marked reduction in output is a result of the suspension of gold specie payments by Northern banks in late 1861 due to the uncertain outcome of the Civil War. Most examples of this issue were used in export trade, and survivors are scarce, representing coins that have been repatriated in recent decades. The 1862 has never been represented in quantity in double eagle finds, although the treasure of the S.S. Brother Jonathan shipwreck yielded a single coin. Fewer than 350 coins are believed extant in all grades, and in Mint State the estimate dwindles to only 35 to 50 pieces with such coins enjoying particularly strong demand from discerning double eagle collectors."

The example to the left was sold by Stack's Bowers Galleries in August 2014 Auction, where it realized $50,400.