Posts Tagged ‘UK Coin’

In my last blog post, I explored the Gold Sovereign’s incredible success as the most trusted and popular of all gold circulating coins throughout the world during the Empire years until 1931 when its reign as the King of Coins came under threat…

The Outbreak of the First World War in 1914, followed by the worldwide economic crisis in 1931 seemed to sound the death-knell for the Sovereign.

Gold Sovereigns were struck annually until 1915, but production dropped dramatically in 1914 and the majority of the 20 million minted in 1915 were for overseas use.

Decline in Production

The 1925 Gold Sovereign struck in London for overseas use

As part of the emergency measures put in place upon the Outbreak of the First World War, specie payments were suspended and Treasury notes replaced gold. Gold coins disappeared from circulation but they continued to be minted for overseas bullion transactions.

Sovereigns were struck in 1916 and a small amount in 1917, but no more circulating Sovereigns were minted in London, except for a consignment for overseas use in 1925. The overseas branch mints still struck considerable quantities of Sovereigns.

Sovereign production continued after the war, but in much smaller numbers. Despite this, another two branch mints were opened. One in Bombay in 1918, which struck Sovereigns for just one year only. The other was opened in South Africa in 1923.

By 1926, only three branch mints were still operating – Perth, Melbourne and Pretoria. However, the worldwide economic crisis in 1931 signalled the end of these remaining branch mints, Britain left the Gold standard and the last Sovereigns were struck in Pretoria in 1932.

This appeared to be the end of the Sovereign. But all was not as it seemed.

Would the Sovereign be revived again?

Find out in the final part of our 200 years of the Sovereign Blog Series – click here to read it >>

Announcing the new UK Bicentenary Gold Proof Sovereign

To mark the Bicentenary of the “modern” Gold Sovereign in 2017, The Royal Mint have just released a brand new Gold Proof Sovereignreprising Benedetto Pistrucci’s original engraving from 1817.

With a low edition limit of just 10,500 worldwide, a special one-year-only design change and a fine proof finish, the 2017 Bicentenary Gold Sovereign has all the elements to be one of the most collectable British gold coins of the 21st century. And now you can own one.

Click here to secure yours today >>

In Part III, I explored the history of Benedetto Pistrucci’s timeless St. George and the Dragon design used on the Gold Sovereign until its exile in 1825. But that wasn’t the end. It was revived nearly 50 years later in 1871…

The Gold Sovereign reached the height of its prominence and prestige under the record-breaking reign of Queen Victoria as the British Empire expanded.

The ‘chief coin of the world’

The Gold Sovereign was legal tender in 36 colonies during the 1860s and was widely used in countries with no allegiance to the British crown which prompted leading British economic historian, Sir John Clapham to name it ‘chief coin of the world’.

The Branch Mint locations of the Gold Sovereign production across the World

What you may not realise is that not all of these coins were struck in Britain. Sovereigns were struck in many dominions of the British Empire.

International Production

Between 1871 and 1932, Sovereign production was spread over four continents outside of Europe: North America, Australia, Africa and Asia, with branches of The Royal Mint in a number of major international cities.

In order to distinguish where the Sovereigns were minted, The Royal Mint used a variety of mint marks.

These were either a letter or several letters to show its origin. They are found on the coin’s reverse, above the inner two numbers of the date.

Mintmarks from across the World

AUSTRALIA – Gold was discovered in New South Wales in 1851 and three branch mints opened in Sydney, Melbourne and Perth. The mintmarks here bore the initial of the city they were manufactured in.

The Gold Sovereign Mintmarks from across the Empire

SOUTH AFRICA – the African Sovereign is identified by its initials ‘SA (South Africa) and was struck in Pretoria.

CANADA – Despite experiencing its first gold rushes earlier than Australia, a branch mint did not open in Canada until 1908. Sovereigns produced in Canada were marked with a ‘C’ signifying its Canadian origin. The Canadian Sovereign almost certainly contains gold from the Yukon.

INDIA –  Sovereigns struck in India are identified by the country’s initial ‘I’. Sovereigns here were only produced during the year 1918, so they are particularly rare and a target for collectors.

During the reign of King George V, the British Empire reached its territorial peak. It had risen to become the largest formal empire the world had ever seen, holding sway of over 25% of the globe’s population and landmass.

The Gold Sovereign emulated the success of the Empire – it was the go-to coin for international trade. The Sovereign was the most trusted and popular of all gold coins circulating throughout the world.

But its reign as the King of Coins came under threat. The outbreak of World War I in 1914 and the economic crisis in 1931 seemed to put the Sovereign’s future into jeopardy. Was this the end?

Find out in Part V of our 200 years of the Sovereign Blog Series – click here to read >>

Announcing the new UK Bicentenary Gold Proof Sovereign

To mark the Bicentenary of the “modern” Gold Sovereign in 2017, The Royal Mint have just released a brand new Gold Proof Sovereign reprising Benedetto Pistrucci’s original engraving from 1817.

With a low edition limit of just 10,500 worldwide, a special one-year-only design change and a fine proof finish, the 2017 Bicentenary Gold Sovereign has all the elements to be one of the most collectable British gold coins of the 21st century. And now you can own one.

Click here to secure yours today >>