Baldwin's of St. James's
Auction 20 26 Sep 2018
View prices realized
► Sale information
Find similar lots
British Coins, Victoria, sovereign, 1863, 827 on truncation, die no. 22, young head l., rev. crowned shield of arms within wreath (S.3853A; Marsh 48A [R6 in any condition]), lightly cleaned, the all-important features '827' and die number sharp, certified and graded by PCGS as Repaired, Very Fine Details
No sovereign of this variety is yet known in Mint State, the finest being a somewhat lustrous choice Extremely Fine coin discovered by this cataloguer some twenty years ago and sold to Spink. Until 1954, the existence of this rarity remained unknown to the numismatic community. The number of '827' sovereigns minted is also unknown although it can be deduced, more or less, if the theory is correct that the numerical designation appearing on the queen's bust at the truncation (well hidden from view) is that of a bar of gold made into sovereigns in order to make a reliable count of how many sovereigns are equal to such a gold bar in storage at the Royal Mint or at the Bank of England. Pieces so produced were at the time nothing but an accounting check for the mint, or the bank, and all were seemingly bagged and placed into commercial circulation. The English sovereign was the world's measure of money in 1863, and doubtless many of these '827' coins were shipped abroad, were used hard and were eventually melted. Only a handful have ever come to light, this specimen being typical. This is one of the rarest of all sovereigns.
(3000-4000 GBP)
No sovereign of this variety is yet known in Mint State, the finest being a somewhat lustrous choice Extremely Fine coin discovered by this cataloguer some twenty years ago and sold to Spink. Until 1954, the existence of this rarity remained unknown to the numismatic community. The number of '827' sovereigns minted is also unknown although it can be deduced, more or less, if the theory is correct that the numerical designation appearing on the queen's bust at the truncation (well hidden from view) is that of a bar of gold made into sovereigns in order to make a reliable count of how many sovereigns are equal to such a gold bar in storage at the Royal Mint or at the Bank of England. Pieces so produced were at the time nothing but an accounting check for the mint, or the bank, and all were seemingly bagged and placed into commercial circulation. The English sovereign was the world's measure of money in 1863, and doubtless many of these '827' coins were shipped abroad, were used hard and were eventually melted. Only a handful have ever come to light, this specimen being typical. This is one of the rarest of all sovereigns.
(3000-4000 GBP)