South Africa 1897 1/2 pond
This specimen was lot 46056 in Stack's Bowers ANA sale (Costa Mesa, CA, August 2021), where it sold for $384. The catalog description[1] noted, "SOUTH AFRICA. 1/2 Pond, 1897. NGC AU-55. Well struck with abundant luster remaining in the protected areas and no overly distracting marks." South Africa, after a turbulent history between English and Dutch settlers and the native population, was constituted the Union of South Africa in 1910. This coin was issued 1893-97 by the Afrikaner republic before its conquest by the British. With the collapse of apartheid, collecting South African coins is now respectable again.
Recorded mintage: 75,000, a slightly better date.
Specification: 3.99 g, 0.917 fine gold, AGW: 0.1176 oz.
Catalog reference: Fr-3; KM-9.2; Hern-Z43.
- Michael, Thomas, and Tracy L. Schmidt, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1801-1900, 9th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2019.
- Hern, Brian, John Bothma and Hercie Pieterse, Hern's Handbook on South African Coins & Patterns, Ferndale, South Africa, 2013.
- 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]Orsini, Matt, Kyle Ponterio and Jeremy Bostwick, The August 2021 ANA sale: World and Ancient Coins, Costa Mesa, CA: Stack's Bowers LLC, 2021.
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