Great Britain 1699 5 guineas Fr-311

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Heritage sale 3096, lot 30305
H3096-30305r.jpg

This specimen was lot 30305 in Heritage auction 3096 (Dallas, TX, March 2021), where it sold for $108,000. The catalog description[1] noted,

"Among the Finest Certified. Great Britain: William III gold "Elephant & Castle" 5 Guineas 1699 MS61 NGC, KM 505.2, Fr-311, S-3455, Schneider-479. 41.7 g. UNDECIMO edge. A covetable 5 Guineas, struck near the beginning of Britain's rise as the foremost colonial power in the world. Produced upon a bright and luminous harvest-gold planchet that retains generous mint brilliance even centuries on, this Mint State selection earns its elite designation for its high-end quality, combining an as-struck level of detail with the aforementioned luster, which must be seen in hand to be fully appreciated. As has been pointed out elsewhere, the 5 Guineas of 1699 were generally lightly struck, resulting in a particular flatness to the higher points of the design that oftentimes is mistaken for wear. This softness is evident in the higher features of this specimen as well, including William's hair curls and laureate wreath, but a fullness of luster and close examination reveal only what the grade designation already confirms: this offering escaped circulation for the entirety of its 300+ year-long history. Though lightness of strike may be a defining obverse feature, the reverse displays only the clearest and most well-expressed detail, with the legends, scepters, and crowns all produced to exacting calculation, crisp and without a hint of weakness. Only gentle friction defines the grade, along with a fine and slightly curved reverse scratch, noted for accuracy. A true collector's coin, tied for the second-finest certified to date across both PCGS and NGC, with only a single example, an MS62 that hammered in a European Auction for over $200,000 in September of 2018, certified finer. From the Paramount Collection."

This date comes with (shown here) and without (Fr-309) an elephant below the bust.

Recorded mintage: unknown.

Specification: 41.75 g, 0.917 fine gold, this specimen 41.90 g.

Catalog reference: KM 520.1, Fr-318, S-3561, Schneider-523.

Source:

  • Cuhaj, George S., and Thomas Michael, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1601-1700, 6th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2014.
  • 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]Bierrenbach, Cristiano and Warren Tucker, Heritage World and Ancient Coins Auction 3096, featuring the Paramount Collection of World & Ancient Coins, Dallas, TX: Heritage Auction Galleries, 2021.

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