Sovereign Queen Elizabeth II.

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Gold Sovereign minted during the reign of Elizabeth II.

The Gold Sovereign is undoubtedly one of the world's most famous and desirable investment coins, and is issued annually with a total weight of 7.988052 g (containing 7.322381 g of pure gold) in 22 carat gold purity. In its millennial history, the British Royal Mint minted gold Sovereigns for the first time between 1817 and 1917. This was due to the British government's 1816 decision to stabilize the currency of Great Britain due to economic difficulties following the French Revolutionary Troubles and the Napoleonic Wars. The Sovereign was reissued in 1925 and has continued to be minted since 1957. Today it is the oldest coin still minted in the world. The coin is named after the English gold sovereign, which was minted between 1489 and 1604.

The coin bears on its reverse a neoclassical image of St George on horseback by Italian engraver and medallist Benedetto Pistruccio. St. George holds a sword in his right hand and draws the horse's reins with his left arm. His body is not protected by any armour, except for a helmet, flowing cloak and light sandals he is naked. The saint's horse rears up over the wounded dragon. The present design differs little from that of 1821. The design includes the year of issue and the artist's initials "B.P." at the bottom of the coin.
The historical motif underwent modifications in the first years of minting. The original design depicted St. George with a broken spear, another part was impaled in a dragon and part was lying on the ground. The spear was replaced by a sword in 1821. The figure of the saint, his cloak and clasp or the robustness of the horse have also evolved. The most common change was the tail, flowing from the helmet of the original design of 1817. The tail is absent on coins from 1821, reappears in 1887, undergoes modifications in 1893 and 1902, and is removed again in 2009.

The obverse shows the traditional portrait of Elizabeth II, the fifth and definitive coin portrait of the Queen, by Jody Clark, with the initials "JC" and the inscriptions "ELIZABETH II" and "DEI GRA REGINA FID DEF".

This product is part of the following product sets: