Great Britain 1813 guinea
This specimen was lot 31127 in Heritage sale 3037 (New York, January 2015), where it sold for $15,275. The catalog description[1] noted, "George III gold Proof Guinea 1813 PR64 NGC, Royal mint, By Lewis Pingo. A rare proof military guinea. This is one of just 4 examples certified by NGC, with the only superior piece being one graded PR64 Cameo. Considering that PCGS has graded just one (a PR63), it becomes clear just how rare this type is. Light handling is evident, but completely unobtrusive. At the top right of the crown on the reverse, a small but intentional mark is present, and could be interpreted as "II £" or possibly "II 4D" (depending on how one holds the coin) - perhaps this is an old collector's mark, indicating what he paid for the coin." The previous guinea is noted for 1787-99. No guineas were issued until this small issue of 1813. The reform of 1817 terminated all guinea-denominated issues in favor of the sovereign. At that time the guinea, which heretofore had varied in value, was fixed at 21 shillings. Half and third guineas were struck 1804-13, presumably to pay soldiers and sailors during the Napoleonic Wars. Domestically, Great Britain operated on paper Bank of England notes; the gold standard would not be resumed until after Waterloo.
Recorded mintage: unknown plus proofs.
Specification: 8.35 g, 0.917 fine gold, .246 troy oz AGW.
Catalog reference: KM 664, S-3730, WR-114 (R4).
- Michael, Thomas, and Tracy L. Schmidt, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1801-1900, 9th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2019.
- [1]Bierrenbach, Cristiano, Warren Tucker and Scott Cordry, Heritage Signature Auction 3037, featuring the Empire, the Santa Catarina, the Law and the Santa Maria Collections, Dallas, TX: Heritage Auction Galleries, 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.
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