Sovereign Rarities Ltd
Auction 4 21 Sep 2021
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Elizabeth I (1558-1603), silver Crown of Five Shillings, 1601, ornate crowned bust left holding orb and sceptre, sceptre points to I of legend, four fingers on handle, crown breaks inner beaded circle, initial mark 1 (1601), legend and beaded border surrounding, ELIZABETH; D; G; ANG; FRA; ET; HIBER; REGINA:1:, rev. long cross fourchée under quartered shield of arms, legend and beaded borders surrounding, :1: POSVI: DEVM: AD IVTORE M: MEVM:, 29.84g (Cooper dies C /6 variety; N.2012; S.2582). Toned with some flecking and surface marks, otherwise good very fine, a scarce die variety.
The abbreviated Latin legends translate as on the obverse "Elizabeth by the Grace of God, Queen of England France and Ireland," and on the reverse "I have made God my Helper" a Psalm from the Bible.
Silver Crowns were only struck near the end of the reign of Elizabeth I in the last issue of her coinage. They are dated by the mint marks 1 for 1601, or 2 for 1602 in the Julian calendar in use at that time. F. R. Cooper studied the coinage in depth throughout the 1960s and produced his synopsis of the coinage, published through the Spink Numismatic Circular in June 1971. However, this die study did not illustrate or define this reverse die variety we have here, which originally went unnoticed in a Seaby Bulletin of August 1963, item 8502; an example of which eventually appeared for sale in Cooper's own collection sold at Glendining as "West Country Collector" on 8th November 1978 lot 11, which in turn came from a Glendining sale of 10th April 1974 lot 124.
Provenance:
Ex Rodney Smith, Lord Smith of Marlow, portions purchased by Spink and Son Ltd in 1969 and 1983.
Ex Alan Barr Collection, Part Two, circa 2005, Mark Rasmussen Numismatist, item 171.
(£6,000-£8,000)
The abbreviated Latin legends translate as on the obverse "Elizabeth by the Grace of God, Queen of England France and Ireland," and on the reverse "I have made God my Helper" a Psalm from the Bible.
Silver Crowns were only struck near the end of the reign of Elizabeth I in the last issue of her coinage. They are dated by the mint marks 1 for 1601, or 2 for 1602 in the Julian calendar in use at that time. F. R. Cooper studied the coinage in depth throughout the 1960s and produced his synopsis of the coinage, published through the Spink Numismatic Circular in June 1971. However, this die study did not illustrate or define this reverse die variety we have here, which originally went unnoticed in a Seaby Bulletin of August 1963, item 8502; an example of which eventually appeared for sale in Cooper's own collection sold at Glendining as "West Country Collector" on 8th November 1978 lot 11, which in turn came from a Glendining sale of 10th April 1974 lot 124.
Provenance:
Ex Rodney Smith, Lord Smith of Marlow, portions purchased by Spink and Son Ltd in 1969 and 1983.
Ex Alan Barr Collection, Part Two, circa 2005, Mark Rasmussen Numismatist, item 171.
(£6,000-£8,000)