My collecting interests have grown and evolved over the past few years. I moved on from collecting US coinage many years ago because set building isn’t appealing to me. The core of my collection is German States Thalers and will probably continue to be. I am a very visual buyer. When walking a bourse floor, I am looking for things that catch my eye either for their beauty or uniqueness. Most of my recent purchases have been medallic art from the 16th to 19th centuries. That said, I think everyone has their holy grail or bucket list numismatic items that they want to acquire someday. The coin in this article appeals to me in multiple ways. It’s a large piece of hammered gold from the 17th century. It is made for use in Scotland, one of my other favorite places to collect from. It portrays James VI of Scotland who was also James I of England. We will get to more on him later. The Unite was a denomination that I wanted to add at some point. And, of course, it’s an attractive coin. S-5463, Fr. 48. Obverse: Crowned 1/2-length figure of James VI right with scepter and orb in inner circle Lettering: ·IACOBVS·D·G·MAG·BRIT·FRAN·ET·HIB·REX· Translation: James by the Grace of God King of Great Britain, France and Ireland Reverse: Crowned arms, English arms in 1st and 4th quarters Lettering: ·FACIAM·EOS·IN·GENTEM·VNAM·I R Translation: I will make them one nation Composition: Gold Fineness: 0.9170 Weight: 9.87g The unite was an English gold coin first produced during the reign of King James I. It was named after the legends on the coin indicating the king's intention of uniting his two kingdoms of England and Scotland; the intention was that the coin would be used in both countries. The unite was valued at twenty shillings until 1612 when the increase in the value of gold throughout Europe caused it to be raised to twenty-two shillings. The coin was produced during James I's second coinage (1604–1619), and it was replaced in the third coinage by the Laurel worth twenty shillings. All the coins were produced at the Tower Mint. Gold Unites are all scarce but attainable. NGC has graded a total of 10 of this type, with 4 being details grade like this one. The holder states that the details grade is for graffiti, which is obvious to the right of the bust on the obverse. Given what a similarly scarce US coin would cost, I got a bargain. James VI and I was King of Scotland as James VI from July 24th, 1567, and King of England and Ireland as James I from the union of the Scottish and English crowns on March 24th, 1603 until his death in 1625. Though he long attempted to get both countries to adopt a closer political union, the kingdoms of Scotland and England remained sovereign states, with their own parliaments, judiciaries, and laws, ruled by James in personal union. James was the son of Mary, Queen of Scots, and a great-great-grandson of Henry VII, King of England and Lord of Ireland, and thus a potential successor to all three thrones. He acceded to the Scottish throne at the age of thirteen months, after his mother was forced to abdicate. Although his mother was a Catholic, James was raised as a Protestant. Four regents governed during his minority, which ended officially in 1578, though he did not gain full control of his government until 1583. In 1589, he married Anne of Denmark. In 1603, James succeeded his cousin Elizabeth I. He reigned in all three kingdoms for 22 years, a period known as the Jacobean era. After the Union of the Crowns, he based himself in England from 1603, returning to Scotland only once, in 1617, and styled himself "King of Great Britain and Ireland". He advocated for a single parliament for England and Scotland. During his reign, the Plantation of Ulster and English colonization of the Americas began. At 57 years and 246 days, James's reign in Scotland was the longest of any Scottish monarch. He achieved most of his aims in Scotland but faced great difficulties in England, including the Gunpowder Plot in 1605 and conflicts with the English Parliament. Under James, the "Golden Age" of Elizabethan literature and drama continued, with writers such as William Shakespeare, John Donne, Ben Jonson, and Francis Bacon contributing to a flourishing literary culture. He sponsored the translation of the Bible into English (later named after him, the Authorized King James Version), and the 1604 revision of the Book of Common Prayer, He was strongly committed to a peace policy, and tried to avoid involvement in religious wars, especially the Thirty Years' War that devastated much of Central Europe. He tried but failed to prevent the rise of hawkish elements in the English Parliament who wanted war with Spain. The first English king of the House of Stuart, he was succeeded by his second son, Charles I. Sources: Wikipedia for the history. Numista for details I didn’t know. Feel free to add on anything you feel is relevant. Thanks for reading.
A show-stopper, right there! Very impressive. Congratulations on adding such a beautiful piece of history to your collection! England was on the rise both culturally and geopolitically during this time. Good times were ahead. Here is my lowly contribution, a small silver coin of his cousin, Elizabeth I. I need to upgrade in a bad way. ELIZABETH I, 1558-1603 AR Penny (14.38mm, 0.54g, 11h) Struck 1582. Tower of London mint Obverse: E · D · G · ROSA · SINE · SPINA ·, crowned bust of Queen Elizabeth I left Reverse: CIVI-TAS LON-DON, quartered shield of arms over long cross fourchée References: Numista #202809 Lightly toned. Typical weak strike.
That really is a beauty! These are the earliest affordable pieces. My example is mm Lis, and the English version - poorly struck. These are really large coins - quite impressive in hand!
You've given me a great history lesson, Chris B, and I thank you for that. The period you speak of is extremely interesting but complicated, at least for me. I've researched the 17th century somewhat because of my interest in the era of the Glorious Revolution and earlier. My main collecting focus is on the emissions of the English/Irish conflict. Difficult at best because of over eight centuries of conflict to contend with. I have a number of siege / emergency coins and some mid to late 17th century counterstamped coins. Much of the material is very expensive or unattainable so my collection is limited. In any case, thank you again for your contribution to my knowledge of these times. Bruce
It beats my piece which is lower grade. This didn't cost me an arm and a leg. This is a James I English unite. NGC graded this VF-30.
Great article and what interesting coins. Here is one of my James 1 coins. SHILLING 1605-16. S.2656 SINGLE ARCHED CROWN
James VI was a fascinating monarch, he came into the world in a very turbulent time in Scotland with the conflict betwixt Catholics and Protestants and conflict over succession to the throne in Scotland and in England. He navigated a fine balance between being a Scots monarch and aspiring to succeed Queen Elizabeth on her demise as he was the only suitable candidate for the powers that were behind the throne then. BTW my avatar is a Scots penny(1544) from Queen Mary(1542-1567) of Scotland
I also have a James I half laurel. This was issued when James was losing his mind toward the end of his reign.
Hardly anyone here posts about these - I have a few coins of James VI. Possibly the most attractive designs, and really varied - due to economic alignment with England. High inflation was the consequence. The gold is pretty much out of reach financially (and really quite rare), this coin is the same issue as yours but 20/- Scots - bought Baldwins while they were still at Adelphi terrace, some time ago. He was only 16 at the time - obvious from the portraiture..
