Serendipity

Apologies for coming late to this topic in 2020. Not surprisingly, this topic is even more relevant today than it was 14 years ago. I don’t know what coin collecting will be like 100 years from now. I don’t know if there will be more slabbed coins rather than raw coins in the future.

I’ve discovered that none of my sovereigns are counterfeit and that the discrepancies in old sovereigns are accounted for by the old Victorian minting methods.

1911 George V Sydney Mint sovereign bought from Sovereign Rarities. George V of Great Britain initially sought a career in the British Navy, but the premature death of his brother, Albert, placed him on the throne in 1910. However, it was not until 1911 that George’s portrait replaced that of Edward’s on coins. He played an active role supporting the troops during World War I. George’s last reputed words were: “Bugger Bognor!” (When told by his doctor he would soon be well enough to visit Bognor Regis.) DESCRIPTION George V (1910-36), gold sovereign, 1911 S, Sydney Mint, Australia, bare head left, B.M. raised on truncation for engraver Bertram Mackennal, Latin legend and toothed border surrounding, GEORGIVS V D.G.BRITT:OMN:REX F.D.IND:IMP: (“George V, by the Grace of God, King of all the Britons, Defender of the Faith, Emperor of India”), rev. struck en médaille, St. George on horseback slaying dragon with sword right, plumed helmet with three-strand streamer, horse with long tail, ending in three strands, with one spur higher up at curve, broken lance on ground-line to left, tiny WWP raised under lance for Master of the Mint, William Wellesley Pole, mint mark S at centre of ground-line, date in exergue, tiny B.P. raised in upper right of exergue for engraver Benedetto Pistrucci, edge milled, weight 8.00g (Bentley 727; McDonald 237; Marsh 271; M.C.E. 639; S.4003). Toned with light bag marks, otherwise good extremely fine. Ex Randy Weir Numismatics, Unionville, Ontario, Canada, purchased 14 January 1992. Calendar year mintage 2,519,000.

Marking coins in some way by merchants in order to validate their authenticity is a very old practice and can even be found on ancient Greek coins.

1873 Victoria Melbourne Mint Sovereign St. George Reverse gEF 1873 Victoria Melbourne Mint St. George Reverse sovereign bought from Sovereign Rarities. Princess Alexandrina Victoria was born in 1819, crowned as Queen Victoria in 1837 when her uncle, William IV, died and reigned through a period of unprecedented change until her death in 1901. Victoria ruled for 64 years, a record only recently surpassed by Queen Elizabeth II. DESCRIPTION Victoria (1837-1901), gold sovereign, 1873 M, Melbourne Mint, Australia, first young filleted head left, W.W. raised and buried in truncation for engraver William Wyon, mint mark M below, Latin legend and toothed border surrounding, VICTORIA D:G:BRITANNIAR:REG:F:D: (“Victoria, by the Grace of God, Queen of the Britons, Defender of the Faith”), rev. struck with inverted die axis, St. George on horseback slaying dragon with sword right, plumed helmet, horse with long tail, ending in three strands, with one spur higher up at curve, broken lance on ground-line to left, tiny WWP raised under lance for Master of the Mint, William Wellesley Pole, date in exergue, tiny B.P. raised in upper right of exergue for engraver Benedetto Pistrucci, edge milled, weight 8.00g (Bentley 760; Marsh 95; M.C.E. 536; S.3857). Lightly toned, with proof-like underlying brilliance, lightly bag-marked, otherwise pleasing good extremely fine. Ex Randy Weir Numismatics, Unionville, Ontario, Canada, purchased 12 November 1990. Calendar year mintage 752,000 presumably all St. George reverse of which 199 went for pyx trial.

I intend to purchase more sovereigns during the lockdown. I’m very careful where I buy my sovereigns from because of the proliferation of forgeries. Unfortunately, more forgeries turn up with numismatic than bullion coins because collectors generally pay more for numismatic coins. I’ve bought my sovereigns from Baldwin’s, Chards and Sovereign Rarities. I never buy any sovereigns from eBay. Even reputable dealers can sometimes mistakenly sell you a fake sovereign. One of my sovereigns worries me but my worries might be groundless.

I’m sorry to hear that. One of my sovereigns worries me. You are probably familiar as an American with air-tite capsules. I’m using direct fit 22mm air-tites to encapsulate my 22.05mm sovereigns. The heads on sovereigns are forever changing. Some are in high and others are in low relief. Some sovereigns rattle in the capsules while others don’t. What worries me is that one of my sovereigns seems to be slightly thicker than the others. The capsule holds the sovereign but doesn’t completely snap shut. I’m starting to suspect it might be a forgery. Perhaps old mints didn’t work to the same high standards as modern mints. I don’t really know. Perhaps there are slight discrepancies in older sovereigns. They didn’t mint them, of course, with modern plastic air-tite capsules in mind.

I’m particularly interested in numismatic or historical sovereigns.

Lawrence of Arabia & Sovereigns T.E. Lawrence, aka Lawrence of Arabia, was a British scholar, writer and soldier who mobilised the Arab Revolt against the Ottoman Empire during World War I and wrote about his wartime exploits in The Seven Pillars of Wisdom (1926). Gold sovereigns were used by Lawrence to sway Arab tribes to join the Allied fight and as a bounty for Arabs who returned any downed Allied airmen to safety. Portrait of T. E. Lawrence by Augustus John, 1919. Tate Modern, London. First World War propaganda poster featuring the sovereign, July 1915.

1914-1918 George V Sovereigns I recently purchased these First World War sovereigns online from Chards. Sovereigns issued during the First World War are significant to collectors and none more so than the 1914 and 1918 issues which are frequently paired together in collections to mark the beginning and end of the Great War. T.E. Lawrence, aka Lawrence of Arabia, was a British scholar, writer and soldier who mobilised the Arab Revolt against the Ottoman Empire during the First World War and wrote about his wartime exploits in The Seven Pillars of Wisdom (1926). Gold sovereigns were used by Lawrence to sway Arab tribes to join the Allied fight and as a bounty for Arabs who returned any downed Allied airmen to safety. The war impacted on the sovereign - eventually being removed from circulation and replaced by banknotes, but it was still struck throughout the First World War, mostly in overseas branch mints. Due to its single year production, the Bombay Mint sovereign is generally the most sought-after issue for 1918. At the 11th hour on the 11th day of the 11th month of 1918 the gunfire finally ceased. This brought to an end over 4 years of fighting that had accounted for over 17 million military and civilian lives. George V’s reign saw the rise of socialism, communism, fascism, Irish republicanism, and the Indian independence movement, all of which radically changed the political landscape. DESCRIPTION George V (1910-36), gold sovereign, 1914 M, Melbourne Mint, Australia, bare head left, B.M. raised on truncation for engraver Bertram Mackennal, Latin legend and toothed border surrounding, GEORGIVS V D.G.BRITT:OMN:REX F.D.IND:IMP: (“George V, by the Grace of God, King of all the Britons, Defender of the Faith, Emperor of India”), rev. struck en médaille, St. George on horseback slaying dragon with sword right, plumed helmet with three-strand streamer, horse with long tail, ending in three strands, with one spur higher up at curve, broken lance on ground-line to left, tiny WWP raised under lance for Master of the Mint, William Wellesley Pole, mint mark M at centre of ground-line, date in exergue, tiny B.P. raised in upper right of exergue for engraver Benedetto Pistrucci, edge milled (Marsh 232; M.C.E. 642; S.3999). Almost extremely fine. Calendar year mintage 2,012,029. George V (1910-36), gold sovereign, 1918 I, Bombay Mint, India, bare head left, B.M. raised on truncation for engraver Bertram Mackennal, Latin legend and toothed border surrounding, GEORGIVS V D.G.BRITT:OMN:REX F.D.IND:IMP: (“George V, by the Grace of God, King of all the Britons, Defender of the Faith, Emperor of India”), rev. struck en médaille, St. George on horseback slaying dragon with sword right, plumed helmet with three-strand streamer, horse with long tail, ending in three strands, with one spur higher up at curve, broken lance on ground-line to left, tiny WWP raised under lance for Master of the Mint, William Wellesley Pole, mint mark I at centre of ground-line, date in exergue, tiny B.P. raised in upper right of exergue for engraver Benedetto Pistrucci, edge milled (Marsh 228; S.3998). Obverse good very fine, reverse almost extremely fine. Calendar year mintage 1,294,372. State portrait of George V by Sir Luke Fildes, 1911. Portrait of T. E. Lawrence by Augustus John, 1919. Tate Modern, London. First World War propaganda poster featuring the sovereign, July 1915.

I recently ordered this beautiful gold Philharmonic coin from the Royal Mint Bullion who have a limited selection of world coins. The Philharmonics are very popular with the Asian market, especially Japan. I bought the 1oz gold Philharmonic to complement my 1/4oz gold version which was also minted in 2018. The reverse features a cornucopia of musical instruments used by the Vienna Philharmonic, including a Vienna horn, bassoon, harp, and four violins centered on a massive cello. Both the reverse and obverse designs were produced by the Chief Engraver of the Austrian Mint, Thomas Pesendorfer. The obverse depicts the Musikverein Pipe Organ. Located inside of the Golden Music Hall, it is a fixture within the home theatre of the Vienna Philharmonic and is situated in the Innere Stadt neighbourhood of Vienna. Founded in 1842, the history of the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra dates back much further. As early as 1833, orchestral performances took place in Vienna and were done by ad hoc orchestras.

Thank you very much! It’s a real privilege! I’ve been collecting coins since 2018. My coin collection consists of a rich variety of world bullion and numismatic pieces, everything from exotic shipwreck coins to the cutest panda. Not even the pandemic can put a stop to my coin collecting. I’m doing everything I can to scout online for some of the best historical pieces.

Marcus Aurelius is often seen as the last of the truly great Roman emperors from 161-180 CE before the empire declined. One factor in the decline may be the Antonine Plague, a mysterious epidemic that the army brought back from West Asia which ravaged the empire from roughly 165-190 CE. Marble bust of Marcus Aurelius (121-180 CE), Glyptothek Museum in Munich, Bavaria, Germany.

I bought this beautiful 2019 1oz Gold Buffalo, also known as an American Buffalo, from Atkinsons. The Native American figurine did not come with the coin but was coincidentally or “serendipitously” on my mantelpiece along with various objets d’art. The obverse (front) features James Earle Fraser's classic portrait of a Native American in profile, as first seen on the 1913 Buffalo Nickel. Fraser based the portrait on the Native American chieftains Iron Tail (Sioux), Big Tree (Kiowa), and Two Moons (Cheyenne), who posed as models for him to sketch. The reverse depicts an American bison, also adapted from the original reverse of the classic Buffalo Nickel. This image is thought to be based on Black Diamond, a buffalo living in the Central Park Zoo in the early 20th century.

1908 Edward VII Melbourne Mint Sovereign EF Edward VII was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and Emperor of India from 22 January 1901 until his death in 1910, an immensely popular and affable monarch and a leader of society. DESCRIPTION Edward VII (1901-10), gold sovereign, 1908 M, Melbourne Mint, Australia, bare head right, tiny DeS. raised below truncation for engraver George William de Saulles, Latin legend and toothed border surrounding, EDWARDVS VII D:G:BRITT:OMN:REX F:D:IND:IMP: (“Edward VII, by the Grace of God, King of all the Britons, Defender of the Faith, Emperor of India”), rev. struck en médaille, St. George on horseback slaying dragon with sword right, plumed helmet with three-strand streamer, horse with long tail, ending in three strands, with one spur higher up at curve, broken lance on ground-line to left, tiny WWP raised under lance for Master of the Mint, William Wellesley Pole, mint mark M at centre of ground-line, date in exergue, tiny B.P. raised in upper right of exergue for engraver Benedetto Pistrucci, edge milled, weight 8.00g (Bentley 820; McDonald 229; Marsh 192; M.C.E. 627; S.3971). Some light bag marks, hairline scratch in obverse field, otherwise extremely fine, better than usually seen. Ex Randy Weir Numismatics, Unionville, Ontario, Canada, purchased c.1998. Calendar year mintage 3,078,500 of which 1,648 went for pyx trial. Photograph by W. & D. Downey, 1900s.