The Perth Mint :: George V Sovereign Mintmark Collection

This magnificent framed set features seven sovereigns all bearing the effigy of King George V, who reigned over the British Empire from 1910 to 1936, during the height of its territorial extent. During the expansion of the British Empire the sovereign rose to become the coin of international currency. Sovereigns were produced in the hundreds of millions, and to keep up with the demand, and to take advantage of the discoveries of gold in the Empire's colonies in Australia, Canada and South Africa, the number of branch British Royal Mints also expanded.
The Sovereign
The sovereign was unique among coins in that it had no denomination, or currency value printed on the coin. Its value was tied to the pound Sterling, which was tied to the gold standard of £3/17s/10 1/2d for a standard ounce of gold. It contained one pound's (£1) worth of gold (20 shillings), or, 22 carats (916.7 fine) gold weighing 7.9881 grams or 0.2354 troy oz, a fraction under 1/4 oz. For this reason it rapidly became an accepted and preferred means of payment by the various merchants around the world, such as the Chinese silk traders, American tobacco sellers and Indian spice merchants.

When the price of gold rose in the 1920s, the gold in sovereigns was worth more than the coin's face value. This value rose to 28 shillings in 1932. In 1931 general production of sovereigns ceased worldwide, and 1933 was the first time in more than a 100 years that no sovereigns were produced anywhere in the Empire.

King George V

King George V was the only monarch whose effigy appeared on sovereigns from all seven mints. George reigned during the height of the Royal Mint's reach, but the tumultuous events of World War I, the collapse of the international monetary system and the demise of the gold standard meant that he would be the last King to grace the sovereign.

The sovereigns in this typeset all feature the King George V obverse effigy, facing to the left sculpted by the Australian artist Sir Edgar Bertram Mackennal. Although George reigned from 1910 until his death on 20 January 1936, his effigy first appeared on coins in 1911. This was design changed to a smaller version in 1929, to give the coin design a more balanced appearance. This also incorporated double beading around the coin's edge.

The reverse design on these sovereigns all feature Benedetto Pistrucci's St George and the Dragon, which, although not immediately popular, came to be regarded as a masterpiece of neoclassical art and an icon instantly associated with the British Empire.

Royal Mintmarks

A mintmark appears above the centre of the date, on all coins, except those from the Royal Mint in London. The mintmarks are Sydney (S), Melbourne (M) and Perth (P) in Australia, Ottawa (C) in Canada, Bombay (I) in India and Pretoria (SA) in South Africa.
Limited Availability
Just 250 of these magnificent, mahogany framed collectables, measuring 470mm x 760mm, have been compiled.