The British Gold Sovereign - An Overview

A Brief Overview:

The sovereign is a British gold coin valued at one pound sterling (£1) and contains 0.2354 troy ounces of pure gold. Introduced in 1817, it started as a circulating coin accepted in Britain and globally but is now mainly a bullion coin and sometimes mounted in jewellery. Circulation strikes and proof examples are collected for their numismatic value. Recently, it features Saint George and the Dragon on the reverse, with the designer Benedetto Pistrucci's initials (B P) beside the date. 

Named after the earlier English gold sovereign, last minted around 1603, it was part of the Great Recoinage of 1816. Parliament favoured a one-pound coin over the 21-shilling guinea. The Master of the Mint, William Wellesley Pole, commissioned Pistrucci to design the new coin, and his depiction was used for other gold coins. Initially unpopular due to the preference for banknotes, the sovereign gained popularity after £1 banknotes were limited by law. It became trusted for international trade and was promoted by the British government to aid commerce. The Royal Mint withdrew lightweight gold coins from circulation.  

The sovereign was minted in Australia from the 1850s until 1932, and later in Canada, South Africa, and India. The sovereigns from Australia initially had a unique design but from 1887 bore Pistrucci's George and Dragon design. By 1900, about 40% of the sovereigns in Britain were minted in Australia.

The coin disappeared from British circulation with the start of World War I in 1914, replaced by paper money, and did not return post-war, though colonial mints continued until 1932. Despite fading out in Britain, the sovereign was used in the Middle East, leading to renewed minting by the Royal Mint in 1957. Since then, it has been struck as both a bullion coin and a collector's item from 1979. Although not in general circulation, it remains legal tender in the UK, along with the half sovereign, double sovereign, and quintuple sovereign, having survived the decimalization of the pound in 1971. 

The First Sovereign:

The coin that initiated a remarkable 533-year legacy has understandably become one of the most prized coins worldwide. It symbolizes a pivotal moment in numismatic history.  

The end of the War of the Roses came with the defeat of the last Yorkist king, Richard III, at the Battle of Bosworth Field in 1485. Henry Tudor emerged victorious and inaugurated the Tudor dynasty, reigning for 118 years with some of Britain's most formidable monarchs. Henry VII, like many rulers before him, aimed to assert his authority. 

 In 1489, he commenced a coinage reform, introducing The Sovereign, the largest gold coin of its time. Crafted from 23 1/3 carat gold, it weighed around 15.3g and measured about 40mm aptly honouring the powerful king. Today, only two 1489 Sovereigns are believed to exist outside of museums and institutions. 

To introduce this significant new coin and later the shilling, the renowned German engraver Alexander of Bruchsal was commissioned. This new sovereign has been hailed as "the finest piece ever produced by the English mint". Alexander earned the title "the father of English coin portraiture". He also crafted the Testoon, or shilling, which has been described as the beginning of modern coinage with Henry VII's shilling. 

The First Sovereign

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