Great Britain 1831 1/2 sovereign
This specimen was lot 30795 in Heritage sale 3081 (New York, January 2020), where it sold for $5,700. The catalog description[1] noted, "Great Britain: William IV gold Proof 1/2 Sovereign 1831 PR63 Ultra Cameo NGC. Plain edge, small sized planchet. A conservatively graded jewel with a pristine coat of frost to William's portrait, the fields markedly clean and with limited case friction. The smallest size Half Sovereign ever released, designed to distinguish it from the Sixpence of the same size which was being frequently gilded in an attempt to confuse vendors." This date, struck only in proof, is rare. A slightly modified type was struck 1834-37.
Recorded mintage: proofs only.
Specification: 3.99 g, 0.917 fine gold, .117 troy oz AGW.
Catalog reference: KM 716, S-3830, W&R-267.
- Bressett, Kenneth E., A Guide Book of English Coins, Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries, 2nd Ed., Racine, WI: Whitman Publishing, 1962.
- Michael, Thomas, and Tracy L. Schmidt, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1801-1900, 9th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2019.
- Lobel, Richard, Mark Davidson, Allan Hailstone and Eleni Calligas, Coincraft's Standard Catalogue of English and UK Coins, 1066 to Date, London: Coincraft, 1995.
- 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.
- [1]Bierrenbach, Cristiano, Warren Tucker and Sam Spiegel, Heritage World and Ancient Coins Auction 3081, featuring the Caranett Collection, Dallas, TX: Heritage Auction Galleries, 2019.
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