Watch List notes:

Charles I, triple unite, Oxford mint, mm. plume with bands on obverse only, 1643, crowned taller bust l., holding sword and olive branch, no scarf, rev. Declaration on continuous scroll, three plumes above with mark of value, wt. 26.6gms. (S.2727; N.2384 [VR]; Schneider 295, same dies and die-state), good very fine on an excellent flan, consistently sharp details on each side, bold legends and outer beaded rims, remarkably free from abuse, with pleasing reddish gold toning. *ex Dominic Mitchell, Glendinings, 27 April 1949, lot 20. ex St. James's Auction 33, 20 May 2015, lot 113 In ordinary times throughout England's thousand-year recorded history no cause ever occurred calling for such a massive and high-purity gold coin as the triple-unite, worth 60 shillings in its day. Consider that, three centuries later in the early 20th century, a pint of beer cost an average of one farthing, and the buying power of this coin in 1643 becomes staggering. The only reason to create it was war, to pay for mountains of supplies at King Charles's tentative quarters as he was pursued by Oliver Cromwell's army. Once he escaped London, his principal holdout was at Oxford, where this fabulous coin was minted. The fortress and mint operated from 1642 to 1646, and the money issued from Oxford varied from 'small change' to pay soldiers to large gold. It might be claimed that the king's visage on many of his coins, so crudely minted in the main, was one of fright. On his triple-unites his armoured body is best represented. We see him fully armed, crowned, holding a long sword out before him but also carrying the olive branch for peace over his shoulder. Surely Charles would have preferred to see peace return, and himself returned to his throne in London. The jewel he wears on a heavy chain around his neck has not been identified but it may be an artistic version of the fabled Alfred Jewel, lost for three centuries and only rediscovered in 1693, but associated with the king's power for a thousand years. The reverse of this massive coin is even more intriguing. Strewn in three lines upon a flowing banner is the Latin abbreviation of Charles's famous Declaration made at Wellington in 1642 in which he proposed renewal of the Protestant religion, the retention of the laws of his kingdom with him as king, and the liberty granted to his subjects as protected by himself and his parliament. This in fact became a declaration of war when Cromwell rejected his offer. Oxford and the other regional mints were quickly assembled to produce money from what precious metal could be found, often the plate of colleges or aristocrats. These coins are not technically siege pieces but most met the same fate, melting, after war was concluded. They were destroyed. So, too, was King Charles I. Within six years of the minting of this most impressive, kingly coin, Charles was captured and executed. With him perished the ancient divine right of kings, for upon the Restoration the powers of governing differed greatly, most of the monarch's ancient authority being placed in the hands of Parliament. The king's son, Charles II, assumed the position of figurehead even though he was still revered by monarchists and the majority of his subjects. Coinage would continue to be issued in the monarch's name with his image predominant, but the 'kingdom' would never again be the same, nor would any coin ever again be struck with such 'declarative' authority as produced Charles Stuart's huge triple-unites. (£42500 - 47500)