In 2008 the West Point Mint in New York struck just 4,476 $25 Burnished Platinum American Eagles. However, of that number only 2,481 coins made it past quality control and into the hands of the public yielding an unusually high 45 percent scrap rate.
The 2008-W $25 Platinum Eagle with the Judicial design reverse is one of only three $25 Burnished Platinum Eagles ever struck. Most importantly, with its extremely low mintage of 2,481 coins, it is the lowest minted $25 Platinum Eagle in history.
The most popular way to collect $25 Platinum American Eagles is by type. There are five distinct types of $25 Platinum Eagles. A complete $25 Platinum Eagle type set consist of one example of each of the following:
1997-2003 Eagle over Sun – Reverse Proof Appearance (200,202 mintage)
2004 to 2008 Eagle over Sun – Matte Finish (73,226 mintage)
2006-W Legislative design – (2,676 mintage)
2007-W Executive design- (3,690 mintage)
2008-W Judicial design- (2,481 mintage)
As you can see, the 2008-W $25 Platinum Eagle is the rarest coin in the set making it extremely popular with modern day coin collectors. It is also important to note that the 2008-W $25 Platinum Eagle is in the top 25 rarest type coins produced by the U.S. Mint in the last 200 years.
This coin is a must have for any serious Platinum Eagle collector, but because history has shown that the rarest coins in an given series typically rise to the highest values at the quickest pace, it is also a coin that is highly sought after by modern coin investors and considered a "safe bet” for novice Platinum Eagle buyers.