England (1346-51) 1/2 noble Fr-87
This specimen was lot 33570 in Heritage sale 3114 (New York, January 2024), where it sold for $12,000. The lot description[1] noted, "Great Britain: Edward III gold 1/2 Noble ND (1346-1351) MS64 NGC. Third Coinage, third period. One of the earliest emissions of British gold, a very rare type knowing only a handful of extant examples across the British Museum and private collections. The specimen at hand is the only certified at NGC, boasting a soaring near-Gem grade. Twinkling luster rises from the surfaces during in-hand inspection, elevating the impressive detail still clinging to these age-old devices, particularly on the reverse. Certainly headed to fill a gap in a curated cabinet of British gold." The noble was introduced by Edward III as part of a monetary reform and was tariffed at eighty pence (6 shillings 8 pence) and was the first gold coin to circulate in several centuries. It and its subdivisions remained the only British gold coins until the reign of Edward VI. It is not, strictly speaking, correct to refer to Great Britain until the reign of James I, who united England and Scotland.
Recorded mintage: unknown.
Specification: gold, 64 grains (4.15 g); this specimen 3.82 g.
Catalog reference: Fr-87, S-1482, N-1111.
- Friedberg, Arthur L. and Ira S. Friedberg, Gold Coins of the World, From Ancient Times to the Present, 9th ed., Clifton, NJ: Coin and Currency Institute, 2017.
- Lobel, Richard, Mark Davidson, Allan Hailstone and Eleni Calligas, Coincraft's Standard Catalogue of English and UK Coins, 1066 to Date, London: Coincraft, 1995.
- Skingley, Philip, ed., Standard Catalogue of British Coins: Coins of England & the United Kingdom, 46th edition, London: Spink & Son, 2011.
- [1]Cristiano Bierrenbach, Warren Tucker and Sam Spiegel, 2024 January 16 - 18 NYINC World Coins Signature Auction #3114, Dallas, TX: Heritage Auction Galleries, 2023.
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