At the beginning of the 20th Century, President Teddy Roosevelt requested a redesign for our Gold coinage to create more artistic and iconic designs. Roosevelt suggested to the U.S. Mint Director at the time, Frank Leach, that if the designs on smaller coins were lower than the background, they would give the viewer a high relief effect. Such an experiment was already being tested by a Boston sculptor named Bela Lyon Pratt. With the help of famed coin designer Charles E. Barber, Pratt created designs until the U.S. Mint was happy with the result of an easily reproducible coin.
Pratt’s design was American at heart, with the obverse featuring the profile of a Native American chief wearing an Indian headdress and the reverse depicting the American Bald Eagle image. The $5.00 Indian Head coin remains a perfect picture of iconic American coinage. Below is a price guide for this piece of U.S. coinage history.
| Date | Type | Mintage | Very Fine Value | Unc Value |
| 1908 to 1916-S | Indian Head Type | 1,416,000 to 164,000 | $400 | $1,500 |
| 1909-O | Indian Head Type | 34,200 | $5,000 | $90,000 |
| 1911-D | Indian Head Type | 72,500 | $750 | $42,000 |
| 1929 | Indian Head Type | 662,00 (Most Melted) | $20,000 | $50,000 |
