With all due respect to those advising entry into the metals-as-investments market, here's silver for the last 35 years:

Here's gold:

Do you *really* think this is sustainable?
Really? I unloaded all of my bulk silver the moment it broke $35, and I'm not even going to look at it again until it's down to $20 again. If this even stays at level, we'll all need gold to pay for bread in three years. Where do you think the trolls who caused our current recession went when the real estate bubble burst? What was the cause of that last precious-metals spike around 1980? Think about it.
1866 wasn't a bad year for Double Eagles. Yes, they're (relatively) plentiful in circulated condition - as long as "circulated" means "less than AU." $2900 would be a decent price for an AU55 coin in a reputable holder, and Mint State coins are all but impossible. I don't believe there are as many as 75 1866's in reputable
TPG holders, and only a handful above MS62. It's a [eBayItem]solid[/eBayItem] investment in AU, much less Mint State.
With that said, toby42, the grade of this coin, and the party which graded it, are extremely important factors. You can only trust PCGS, NGC, ANACS and ICG as graders of a coin like this - in any other slab, you must immediately question the very authenticity of the coin - and a grade at or under AU50 makes the price equally questionable.