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1817 Sovereign George III Gold Coin

1817 Gold Full Sovereign George III Coin Reverse

* These images show the exact coin you will receive

Buy a 1817 Sovereign

First year of issue 1817 gold Sovereign, struck late in the reign of King George III as part of a dramatic overhaul of British coinage.

Minted in the wake of the Great Recoinage of 1816, these early Sovereigns feature Benedetto Pistrucci's renowned Saint George and the dragon motif with the addition of a garter motif that reads 'HONI · SOIT · QUI · MAL · Y · PENSE' - a detail not used on later issues.

  • The obverse displays a laureate bust of George III, also attributed to Pistrucci
  • Part of a calendar year mintage of 3,235,239 gold Sovereigns minted in 1817

S 3785, Marsh 1

Grade: gVF - good Very Fine

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The First Milled Sovereign

The first machine-made Sovereigns were minted in July 1817, taking their name from an earlier Tudor issue and replacing the Guinea as the premier British gold coin. As the earliest date, 1817 Sovereigns are much sought after.

St George And The Dragon

1817 Sovereigns were the first to display Benedetto Pistrucci's Saint George and the dragon reverse, with this version showing England's patron saint holding a broken spear rather than a sword, the motif surrounded by a garter.

Portrait Of King George III

These Sovereigns feature an idealised, laureate bust of King George III, also attributed to Pistrucci. The effigy is encircled by an inscription that reads 'GEORGIUS III D:G: BRITANNIAR: REX F:D:' with '1817' below.

Struck In 22-Carat Gold

These historic British coins were minted to the same specifications as their modern counterparts in 7.98 grams of solid 22-carat (91.67%) fine gold, measuring 22 millimetres in diameter from milled edge to milled edge.

1817 Sovereign Mintage

In 1817, records indicate that 3,235,239 gold 'full' Sovereigns were struck at the Royal Mint. Many will have been melted down over the centuries, making surviving examples in good condition highly desirable to collectors.