Jeff Garrett:The date is clearly the rarest and most popular date of the series. Although 1933 Double Eagles have been declared illegal to own in most cases, the legality of 1933 Eagles has never been questioned. Virtually the entire mintage was melted before leaving government hands. Owning an example of this date is certainly one of the highlights of any numismatic collection and a feat precious few collectors can ever hope to accomplish. The Smithsonian collection contains an MS 65 example. At one time the late, great collector Robert Kruthoffer owned the finest known example of this date as well. He sold his coin in 1981 for $79,000.  Kruthoffer was clearly right, but way ahead of his time!!