Piaget $20 Coin Watch

There’s something wildly subversive about turning a $20 gold coin into a timepiece—and doing it so well that nobody even notices. That’s exactly what Piaget pulled off with this exceptional Coin Watch, crafted from a genuine 1904 United States Liberty Head Double Eagle.

Let’s start with the coin itself: Lady Liberty faces left in classical profile, crowned with a tiara that reads “LIBERTY,” flanked by thirteen stars representing the original colonies. On the reverse, the Great Seal of the United States—an eagle mid-flare, clutching arrows and an olive branch under a banner reading “In God We Trust.” This wasn’t pocket change. It was the kind of coin that lived in bank vaults and presidential desk drawers.

But Piaget? They looked at it and said, “let’s put a movement inside.”

The transformation is nothing short of sorcery. The watch is seamlessly hidden within the coin, revealed only when the top flips open along an invisible seam. It closes again with a satisfying click, flush with the ribbed coin edge—no wobble, no gaps. Even the release button is hidden in plain sight, tucked into the reeded edge so precisely that you’d miss it entirely unless someone showed you. Which, let’s be honest, they probably won’t.

Sized at 34mm and weighing just over 35 grams, the case feels substantial but elegant—true to its double life as both precious metal and precision object.

Inside, the watch dial is classic Piaget restraint: cream-white with painted line indices, elegant blued-steel hands, and the logo resting at twelve like it’s been there since 1904. Powering the piece is an ultra-thin hand-wound movement—because of course it is. Nobody threads a mechanical caliber into a space this slim better than Piaget. They've been the masters of "how did they fit that in there?" since the 1950s.

Flip the dial out and you’re greeted by a flourish of old-world craftsmanship. A ring of polished gold “nibs” frame the interior, while the base features tightly guilloché’d spiral engraving—engine-turning so fine it almost glows when the light hits it right. It’s a little baroque, a little Bond gadget, and totally brilliant.

And because no detail was left behind, it even comes with its original leather coin case—so you can tuck it away like the miniature vault it is. Just don’t be surprised if people think it’s actually just a coin. That’s half the fun.

The overall condition? Mint. This thing has survived over a century as both currency and curiosity, and somehow still looks ready to be slipped into the vest pocket of a very discreet millionaire.