Stanley Gibbons Baldwin's
Auction 79 8 May 2013
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BRITISH COINS
The Bentley Collection of British Milled Gold Sovereigns
Extremely Rare William IV Barton's Metal Pattern Reverse Sovereign, dated 1830
William IV (1830-1837), Uniface Pattern Reverse Striking of a Sovereign, 1830, struck in Barton's Metal, by Jean Baptiste Merlen, crowned shield of arms, quartered with the arms of Hanover as an escutcheon, eight harp strings, ANNO 1830 below, border beads with fine teeth surrounding, edge plain, showing copper as does plain side, 4.79g, 21.8mm (cf WR 260; Murdoch -). Lightly toned, hairlined, practically as struck and extremely rare.
ex Randy Weir Numismatics, Unionville, Ontario, Canada, purchased 14 July 2003
Very few other experimental patterns struck in Barton's metal exist for other denominations for William IV but seem rarer than those of George IV. Bartons Metal is gold electrolysed copper where a thin sheet of gold has been laid over a copper core and struck as method to show how a token coinage could be produced. The Deputy Comptroller of the mint at this time was John Barton (1771-1834) who was an engineer and responsible for inventing new more efficient machinery at the Royal Mint. Many of the new methods and machines were written up in detail in the Mechanic's Magazine, volume III – 1824 in issues 63-67. The Bartons Metal patterns of 1825 are all uniface obverse and reverse designs and are extremely rare.
Estimate: £1500-2000
The Bentley Collection of British Milled Gold Sovereigns
Extremely Rare William IV Barton's Metal Pattern Reverse Sovereign, dated 1830
William IV (1830-1837), Uniface Pattern Reverse Striking of a Sovereign, 1830, struck in Barton's Metal, by Jean Baptiste Merlen, crowned shield of arms, quartered with the arms of Hanover as an escutcheon, eight harp strings, ANNO 1830 below, border beads with fine teeth surrounding, edge plain, showing copper as does plain side, 4.79g, 21.8mm (cf WR 260; Murdoch -). Lightly toned, hairlined, practically as struck and extremely rare.
ex Randy Weir Numismatics, Unionville, Ontario, Canada, purchased 14 July 2003
Very few other experimental patterns struck in Barton's metal exist for other denominations for William IV but seem rarer than those of George IV. Bartons Metal is gold electrolysed copper where a thin sheet of gold has been laid over a copper core and struck as method to show how a token coinage could be produced. The Deputy Comptroller of the mint at this time was John Barton (1771-1834) who was an engineer and responsible for inventing new more efficient machinery at the Royal Mint. Many of the new methods and machines were written up in detail in the Mechanic's Magazine, volume III – 1824 in issues 63-67. The Bartons Metal patterns of 1825 are all uniface obverse and reverse designs and are extremely rare.
Estimate: £1500-2000