2009 British Gold 4 / 5 Coin Proof Sets

Return of the Dragon

Design News

St. George and Dragon - Recut Reverse Dies - More Changes

The New Old Thing

According to the Royal Mint:

The 2009 Gold Proof Sovereigns
'I have thought it desirable to employ Mr Pistrucci, an artist of the greatest celebrity...'
So wrote William Wellesley Pole in a letter to the Treasury in 1816. The Master of the Mint was overseeing a major reform of the coinage and wanted British coins not only to be perfectly produced but also to be works of art in their own right. Benedetto Pistrucci was to prove a wise choice. He engraved a series of remarkable portraits of George III and, for the new gold sovereign created a design of such classic beauty that it has endured to this day.

Now, for the sovereign family of 2009, Royal Mint Engravers have used original tools most of which were almost certainly worked on by Pistrucci himself.

For the original sovereign of 1817 St George is shown holding a shattered lance in his right hand, another portion of which lay on the ground below. Pistrucci constantly strove for perfection in his work, however, and made an important change to his masterpiece for the silver crown of 1818 when he replaced the broken lance with a short sword. Although subsequent sovereigns of George III remained unchanged, it was this amended version that would appear on the first sovereigns of George IV issued in the early 1820s. Other changes are evident on these sovereigns, too, for the surrounding garter belt had been removed and the Saint's helmet stripped of its streamer; the streamer was restored on the sovereign in 1887, Queen Victoria's Golden Jubilee year.

The portrait of the Queen too has been influenced by the first modern sovereigns: Ian Rank- Broadley has confessed a great admiration for Pistrucci and 'being inspired particularly by his portrait of George III, I wished to revive elements of his work in this portrait'.

Individual Characteristics

• Quintuple Sovereign - Five Pounds
  The reverse of the £5 coin reflects the original pattern piece of 1820 which, modelled on the 1818 crown, carried the artist's name in full.
  
• Double Sovereign - Two Pounds
  The double sovereign is also based on coins of 1820 but bears only the initials of Pistrucci.
  
• Sovereign
  The sovereign too features Pistrucci's initials but also, reflecting the early sovereigns of George IV, is the only one of the family to feature the plumed helmet minus its streamer.
• Half Sovereign
  The half-sovereign meanwhile, differs from all the others in that it carries no initials at all.
  
• Quarter Sovereign
  Now in 2009, a quarter-sovereign has been made available to collectors for the very first time. Since it takes its place in the sovereign family, Benedetto Pistrucci's St George and the dragon design features on the reverse and differs from both the sovereign and half-sovereign in that the Saint's helmet retains its streamer and Pistrucci's initials have also been included. Pistrucci's St George and the dragon has never featured on a coin this size, but in keeping with the 2009 collection, the Royal Mint Engraving Team has taken meticulous care to ensure that every detail of Pistrucci's original masterpiece has been faithfully reproduced.
  

The Collection
The collection of 2009 therefore consists of companion coins that each bear Pistrucci's dynamic masterpiece in all its original glory yet show fascinating idiosyncrasies that make them entirely individual. It also, for the first time, includes a quarter-sovereign.
In the hands of different engravers during its long history, Pistrucci's classic has been adjusted in minor ways many times more - the streamer from St George's helmet has come and gone while other elements of the design have been revised. Happily, though, the original coinage tools have been preserved.
They were entrusted to the Royal Mint Engraving Team who, for the £5, the double-sovereign and the sovereigns of 2009, manufactured the coinage dies directly from Pistrucci's originals. For the half-sovereign, tools used to produce the coins of 1893 were needed since not until that year did Pistrucci's St George and the dragon at last appear on its reverse. This is the first time that these tools have been used directly in the modern production process.

Specifications

Notes on Table

Prices & Availability

See Also

2009 Sovereigns - Prices & Availability

2009 Half Sovereigns - Photographs of Actual Coins

Highlighting the design differences

Highlighting the design differences

From two pounds to half sovereign

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