We saw high prices in our Monies, Medals & Militaria auction on Thursday 25th April for coins of many denominations and origins, most notably a Victorian AV sovereign 1841.
Star Lot: Victorian AV sovereign 1841
The star lot from our April auction was a Victorian AV sovereign 1841.
Weighing just under 8g and measuring about 2cm, this small coin was worth way more than its weight in gold. The coin, which was struck in 1841, is one of the rarest sovereigns around due to the limited mintage that year. It was not in the best of condition. Our team graded it as Very Fine. This means that it has considerable wear visible when you look at it.
As a result of its condition, we entered it for sale at auction with an estimate of £2,000 - £3,000. The wear on it did not seem to deter collectors. It went on to achieve a hammer price of over £10,000 following intense online bidding from 4 parties. The final price realised of £13,650 (including fees) was an excellent result for the auction house’s 2nd Monies, Medals & Militaria auction.
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The story of the sovereign is a truly Brummie affair. It was consigned at our Jewellery Quarter head office by a local vendor and then sold to a local collector.
Also in the auction, a set of George VI specimen coins in near mint state went on to achieve a realised price of £11,180 (including fees) from an estimate of £5,000 - £7,000. This lot of coins in their original presentation box from 1937 included 4 coins: a 5 pound; a 2 pound; a sovereign; and a half-sovereign.
From across the pond, an early American dime from 1796 realised a price of £5,655 (including fees). Gilbert Stuart designed the coin in the early 18th century with the engraver Robert Scot working on these rare coins. The design featured a draped bust of Liberty with the word LIBERTY and the date 1796 below. It showed 15 stars around the phrase UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, depicting the synonymous American eagle with spread wings. We graded the dime as Near Extremely Fine condition which is a very good coin grading. The dime is considered extremely rare in the world of numismatics for a couple of reasons. 1796 was the first year this denomination was minted and was one of only 22,135 produced. For these reasons, and its condition, we consider it to be numismatically significant.
Hammer Highlights
Victorian AV Sovereign 1841: What The Expert Said
Numismatics specialist Sally Oliver said “It was such a privilege to be able to handle an 1841 sovereign. It is one of the rarest dates of this coin type. We were delighted when it came in and thought it might make a good price but the hammer of over £10,000 is an excellent result for our vendor. It's up there with one of the greatest prices this type of coin has ever made at auction”.
Sally Oliver | MA (Hons), RNS
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