Great Britain 1802 1/2 guinea

Sincona sale 4, lot 4870

This specimen was lot 4870 in Sincona sale 4 (Zurich, October 2011), where it sold for 500 CHF (about US$665 including buyer's fees). The catalog description^[1] noted,

"GROSSBRITANNIEN George III. 1760-1820 ½ Guinea 1802. Fast vorzüglich. (Great Britain, George III, 1760-1820, half guinea of 1802. Nice extremely fine.)"

This type was struck 1801-03, 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. The reform of 1817 terminated all guinea-denominated issues in favor of the sovereign. As the guinea was 21 shillings, this coin would have been ten shillings, six pence.

Recorded mintage: unknown but not rare.

Specification: 4.17 g, 0.917 fine gold, .123 troy oz AGW, this specimen 4,22 g.

Catalog reference: S. 3736, Fr-363, KM-649.

Source:

• 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, and Tracy L. Schmidt, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1801-1900, 9th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2019.
• Skingley, Philip, ed., Standard Catalogue of British Coins: Coins of England & the United Kingdom, 46th edition, London: Spink & Son, 2011.
• ^[1]Numismatic Coins, Medals & Banknotes: Auction 4, Zurich: SINCONA AG, 2011.

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