St. James's Auctions
Auction 32 19 May 2015
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Victoria, sovereign, 1863, '827' on truncation, die number 22, young head l., rev. crowned shield of arms within wreath (S.3852F; M.48A), good very fine, extremely rare
This mysterious issue was unrecognized by the numismatic world for nearly a century, by which time a vast number of British sovereigns of all years had been distributed around the world. Commercial exchange caused unknown numbers to suffer long wear, melting, and disappearance into private hoards and bank holdings. A single '827' sovereign appeared in the Hatton Hoard of gold found in Derbyshire in 1954, and since that time collectors have searched far and wide for more examples. Yet only a handful have been found. By 1980, Marsh knew of so few that he assigned an R6 rarity rating (4 to 8 known). Since then, a few more have come to light, including a piece finer than any Marsh had seen (a slightly lustrous coin discovered by this cataloguer in the 1990s). Any specimen is desirable and incredibly rare, and no collection of Victoria's sovereigns can be complete without an example. Here, the all-important number '827' on the truncation of the bust is good and sharp, as is the first digit of the distinctive reverse die number '22' seen on almost all known specimens. One of the most important of Victorian die varieties, and of extreme rarity in any condition.
Estimate: £6000-7000
This mysterious issue was unrecognized by the numismatic world for nearly a century, by which time a vast number of British sovereigns of all years had been distributed around the world. Commercial exchange caused unknown numbers to suffer long wear, melting, and disappearance into private hoards and bank holdings. A single '827' sovereign appeared in the Hatton Hoard of gold found in Derbyshire in 1954, and since that time collectors have searched far and wide for more examples. Yet only a handful have been found. By 1980, Marsh knew of so few that he assigned an R6 rarity rating (4 to 8 known). Since then, a few more have come to light, including a piece finer than any Marsh had seen (a slightly lustrous coin discovered by this cataloguer in the 1990s). Any specimen is desirable and incredibly rare, and no collection of Victoria's sovereigns can be complete without an example. Here, the all-important number '827' on the truncation of the bust is good and sharp, as is the first digit of the distinctive reverse die number '22' seen on almost all known specimens. One of the most important of Victorian die varieties, and of extreme rarity in any condition.
Estimate: £6000-7000