Among the more enigmatic Proof Peace dollars, the satin finish 1921 is a very difficult coin to properly attribute. The Mint struck these coins using the same dies that it eventually used to produce certain circulation strike 1921 Peace dollars. As such, it can be difficult to distinguish a true Satin Proof 1921 Peace dollar from an uncommonly well-made and carefully preserved business strike.

Even so, some specimens are undeniable Satin Proof strikings of the 1921 Peace dollar. These coins were struck on the Mint's medal press from carefully prepared dies for presentation to government officials and other persons important to the Peace dollar design process. In this the Satin Proofs share a common origin and purpose with the Sand Blast Proof 1921 coins, and both types were probably prepared at the same time during the last few days of that year. The mintage figure for the Satin Proofs can only be estimated based on the number of specimens extant as this issue is not mentioned in the mint director's report for 1921. It also seems likely that the Mint did not make these coins available for purchase by the contemporary public; at very least the issue was unknown to the public at large at the time of striking.

The Satin Proof 1921 Peace dollar was also unknown to the numismatic community until 1975, when Walter Breen authenticated the discovery specimen at that year's ANA Convention. The large amount of time that elapsed since the creation of these coins and their numismatic discovery is easily explained if we keep in mind two previously presented points. First, the Satin Proof 1921 is not a regular issue and was not widely publicized at the time of striking. Second, Satin Proof silver dollars of this date can be difficult to distinguish from well-made business strikes, so it is easy to understand how the special status of these pieces was overlooked by earlier generations of collectors.

The Satin Proof 1921 is not quite as rare as the Sand Blast variant, although properly attributed pieces are still major numismatic rarities in an absolute sense. We believe that fewer than 15, if not 10 different 1921 Peace dollars exist that are undeniable Satin Proofs.

The example to the left was sold by Stack's Bowers Galleries in the August 2019 Rosemont ANA Auction, where it realized $69,000.