Australia 1924-S sovereign
This specimen was lot 375 in Sincona sale 75 (Zürich, May 2022), where it sold for 1,300 CHF (about US$1,578 including buyer's fees). The catalog description[1] noted, "Grossbritannien | Königreich. George V. 1910-1936. Sovereign 1924 S, Sydney. Bare head. Seltener Jahrgang. NGC AU58." This type was struck 1911-28 at the Sydney, Melbourne and Perth mints. The Sydney mint was opened in 1853 to strike sovereigns. It issued other denominations after 1911. The mint was closed in 1926, the building being much too small for modernization. The Australian sovereign is identical to the ordinary British sovereign in every respect except for the addition of a mintmark, which will be found buried in the rock below the dragon on the reverse. As British issues effectively ceased after 1916, Australian sovereigns of George V are quite a bit more common. A slightly modified type (KM 32) was struck 1929 until 1931, when gold coinage ceased altogether.
Recorded mintage: 394,000, a scarce date.
Specification: 7.98 g, 0.917 fine gold, 0.2355 troy oz AGW, this specimen 7.99 g.
Catalog reference: KM 29, S-4003, Fr-38.
- McDonald, Greg, The Pocket Guide to Australian Coins and Banknotes, 23rd ed., Lavington, Australia, 2017.
- Pitt, Michael, Renniks Australian Coin and Banknote Values, 32nd Edition, Matraville, New South Wales, Australia: Renniks Publications, 2023.
- Michael, Thomas, and Tracy L. Schmidt, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1901-2000, 47th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2019.
- 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.
- Skingley, Philip, ed., Standard Catalogue of British Coins: Coins of England & the United Kingdom, 46th edition, London: Spink & Son, 2011.
- [1]Richter, Jürg, SINCONA Auction 75, SINCONA British Collection - Part 2, Zürich: SINCONA AG, 2022..
Link to: