Great Britain 1731 5 guineas
This specimen was lot 30313 in Heritage auction 3096 (Dallas, TX, March 2021), where it sold for $660,000. The catalog description[1] noted,
"Stunning Proof 5 Guineas of George II. Great Britain: George II gold Proof 5 Guineas 1731 PR64+ Cameo NGC, QVARTO edge. By John Croker, reverse by John Tanner. A simply stunning Proof 5 Guineas of George II, for which few superlatives seem adequate in light of the piece's exemplary preservation. Produced during a period of British ascendancy on the world stage, at the time of George's kingship and Sir Robert Walpole's tenure as Prime Minister (the longest in British history, lasting from April of 1721 to February of 1742), this miraculous survivor stands in a league of its own, well beyond the few other Proofs of the same issue that have come to market in the last several years. The offering is an unmistakable Proof, its raised rims and mirrored finish confirming this special designation. Closer study presents a flash at every turn, revealing a lack of noteworthy marks or contact, with only fine die polish lines and resounding reflectivity in the fields. The end result is a superb and luminescent canvas to display the struck features--an exemplary and lightly frosted portrait of the middle-aged Monarch atop the obverse, and a reverse that presents equally sharp legends and an utterly crisp and decisively rendered Hanoverian shield--all of which are without even a trivial instance of striking weakness. In summary, an elite jewel of a coin, which by all appearances is destined for a peak collection of high-grade British gold. From the Paramount Collection."
This type was also struck 1729, 1735, 1738 and 1741. Some of these (not this one) bear the initials "E.I.C.", indicating gold furnished by the East India Company.
Recorded mintage: unknown.
Specification: 41.75 g, 0.917 fine gold.
Catalog reference: KM 571.1, S-3663A, W&R-68 (R4), Schneider-558.
- 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.
- Michael, Thomas, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1701-1800, 7th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2016.
- 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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