The Oft-forgotten Smaller Sibling - The Half Sovereign

Discussion in 'World Coins' started by 1934 Wreath Crown, Jun 26, 2017.

  1. 1934 Wreath Crown

    1934 Wreath Crown Well-Known Member

    A little while back I posted my purchase of an 1879 London Mint sovereign which is a reasonably rare coin and hard to find. The oft-forgotten but equally desirable smaller sibling, the half sovereign, was very often produced in smaller numbers and in many cases, is rarer than the full sovereign.

    When I first started collecting sovereigns, I was led to believe that the full sovereign was the more favoured denomination amongst collectors. I later realized that whilst this might be true for particular years of issue, other denomination like the 5 sovereign and sometimes the double sovereign could also command very high prices e.g. 1902, 1911, 1937 etc.

    I was recently successful in bidding on this Australia 1879s half sovereign. I know it’s a difficult coin to find and the most recent sale I found, was in 2011. That was an AU53 and sold for a shade under $2,000.

    My purchase is an AU55 and although it shares the top spot with 4 other coins, NGC have not graded any coin higher. If my search of past records is accurate, then I have done rather well with this purchase…….

    I quite like the reverse shield design. Please post your half sovereigns here :)

    1879 Half Sov Obv.jpg 1879 half sov Rev.jpg
     
    jj00, coin_nut, Evan8 and 10 others like this.
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  3. spirityoda

    spirityoda Coin Junky

    amazing coin. wow
     
    1934 Wreath Crown and Nathan401 like this.
  4. Nathan401

    Nathan401 Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?

  5. Johndoe2000$

    Johndoe2000$ Well-Known Member

    Awesome coin.
     
    1934 Wreath Crown likes this.
  6. lordmarcovan

    lordmarcovan Eclectic & Eccentric Moderator

    Little sisters... big sisters... they're all beautiful.

    I have a little one, as you likely know.

    She was good enough for Dr. Jacob Terner and his amazing collection, I reckon she's good enough for my little "Eclectic Box" collection. :)

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]
     
  7. Zonker

    Zonker Active Member

    Nice pickup. I should pay more attention to the half sovereign. Collecting the full sovereign has been quite time consuming. I too like the reverse.
     
    1934 Wreath Crown likes this.
  8. Mat

    Mat Ancient Coincoholic

    Very nice, WC!
     
    1934 Wreath Crown likes this.
  9. 7Jags

    7Jags Well-Known Member

    Now a decent 1879 London Mint half sov is quite a challenge as well.
     
    1934 Wreath Crown likes this.
  10. 1934 Wreath Crown

    1934 Wreath Crown Well-Known Member

    Always the perfectionist :happy: Watch this space 7 Jags.....who knows, maybe some time in the future ;)

    For now, let me bask in the glory of my modest achievement.:D:p
     
    Last edited: Jun 26, 2017
  11. lordmarcovan

    lordmarcovan Eclectic & Eccentric Moderator

    Y'know, I've never owned a Shield-type sovereign or half-sov.
     
  12. Stork

    Stork I deliver Supporter

    I've only got a few, and only two with photos handy at the moment.

    Not uncommon but in good shape:
    [​IMG]

    and this one I did a trade for...part of a mix for some slabbed Chinese unicorn coins. This is my coin I've posted around a few times that came with the slab crunched. Fortunately all the damage was over the label and getting it reholdered was not an issue.
    [​IMG]
     
  13. 1934 Wreath Crown

    1934 Wreath Crown Well-Known Member

    Make that your next project LM ;)....a William IIII sovereign. Similar style shield as my half sov above. Although the shield used in subsequent sovereigns was also very pretty.
     
  14. 1934 Wreath Crown

    1934 Wreath Crown Well-Known Member

    Now you know me....I'll never pass the opportunity of posting this half sovereign....even if I have to start a separate thread for it:D:D:shame:;)

    1839 Half sov Obv.jpg 1839 Half sov Rev.jpg
    1839 Half sov Grade.jpg
     
  15. lordmarcovan

    lordmarcovan Eclectic & Eccentric Moderator

    I like them, but there is entirely too much other stuff on my radar. Back about ten? twelve? years ago, when bullion was cheaper, I toyed with the idea of doing a one-per-monarch sovereign type set. (Was surprised to find George VI would be the tough one.) I think I even bought one coin (maybe an Edward VII) but didn't get too far with it, because ... you guessed it! Too much other interesting stuff on my radar. ;)

    Speaking of half-sovereigns:

    #2 on my list of "Top Five Coins I Wish I'd Never Sold" is an 1893 proof half-sovereign. I don't even remember the slab, now - it was either old small ANACS or NGC - a PR64, I'm pretty sure. But that thing was a frosty CAM at least, if not DCAM, though that designation was not noted on the label. It was a stunning little coin and I actually wore it as my avatar piece for a little while over on Collectors Universe.

    Of course even if I hadn't sold it prior to the recession, I would've been forced to do so in the 2008 layoff. My collection has been pillaged and burnt to the ground by circumstance so many times that I've actually developed a more detached air as a result. The 2013 Great Purge that resulted in the selloff of all my collections (except detector finds) was at least voluntary. That started me towards this current "Eclectic Box" endeavor, which is versatile enough to keep me interested for a long time to come.

    I've come a long way numismatically in four years, let alone the last decade. Never mind the last four decades.

    Sorry. Rambling again.

    Alas, I have no photos of my 1893 proof half-sov. Even the old CU avatar picture of it is kaput.
     
    1934 Wreath Crown likes this.
  16. Stork

    Stork I deliver Supporter

    @1934 Wreath Crown And I'll keep hitting the like button!

    @lordmarcovan It was an NGC slab and I had hoped you sold it to ME back in the day. Someone else got to it first.
     
  17. lordmarcovan

    lordmarcovan Eclectic & Eccentric Moderator

    Oh. THAT one again.

    You know what I said before.

    If I owned that, it would be my avatar ... in my sigline ... my desktop wallpaper ... tattooed on my back even though I hate tattoos ... LOL :p

    So I for one do not get tired of seeing that monstrosity.
     
    1934 Wreath Crown likes this.
  18. 1934 Wreath Crown

    1934 Wreath Crown Well-Known Member

    Well I realise now that we collect these things with great difficulty but will those who inherit them after us have the same value for our collections.....I doubt very much!!! At least you enjoyed owning some great coins and I feel that at some stage in the future I will probably only retain some very special ones and voluntarily (hopefully) sell the rest.

    BUT at least I'll be able to say....been there... done that.... owned one of those!!
     
  19. Zonker

    Zonker Active Member

    Something that I think most of us agree on is the lack of enthusiasm in our collections once we are gone. Many threads have discussed this and it is difficult to see a nice collection to unloved. I think keeping a few special coins and selling the rest on your schedule is a good plan. So that begs the question of which one or ones to keep??? I would have problems just picking one.
     
  20. lordmarcovan

    lordmarcovan Eclectic & Eccentric Moderator


    In the words of Fonzie from "Happy Days", "Exactamundo!"
     
    Last edited: Jun 26, 2017
  21. 1934 Wreath Crown

    1934 Wreath Crown Well-Known Member

    1848/7 half sovereign

    1848 Over 7 Half sov obv.jpg 1848 Over 7 Half sov rev.jpg
     
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