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The discovery of large quantities of gold in the
Australian colonies in the 1850's, led to the establishment of the Sydney
Branch of the Royal Mint in 1855. The
first 'Sydney Mint' sovereigns and half sovereigns issued by this mint were
unique in the history of the British Empire. In a situation which has not
been repeated since, the coins carried a design which was completely
different from that of the standard British issue. By 1871, thestandard
Shield and St. George designs had been decreed to be produced by the
colonial mints. A small 'S' mintmark was placed below the shield to
designate the Sydney Mint issues. On 'St. George' issues, the mintmark
appeared on the Obverse below the bust.The
Melbourne Mint commenced operations in 1872 ('M' mintmark) and Perth in 1899
('P' mintmark). A Jubilee head design of Queen Victoria was placed on the
obverse in 1887. Colonial
'S',
'M' and
'P'
mintmarks for 'St. George' gold coins were moved to the reverse on the
ground just above the date. In 1908 (Edward VII's reign), the Canadian Mint
('C' mintmark) at Ottawa began producing sovereigns. For a single year in
1918, the Indian Mint ('I' mintmark) at Calcutta produced a sovereign. The
last of the colonial mints to issue gold coins - Pretoria in South Africa
('SA' mintmark) - began producing sovereigns and half sovereigns in 1923
(George V's reign).
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Britain's last
circulating sovereign issues were dated 1925 and in 1932, the last of
the colonial issues were minted in South Africa. A gold £5, £2 &
Sovereign (£1) set was prepared for Edward VIII but his abdication on
10th December, 1936 ensured that they were never issued.
Proof £5, £2, Sovereigns (£1) and Half Sovereigns (£½) were issued
to commemorate the coronation of George VI in 1937. A small number were
minted in 1953 for Elizabeth II's coronation but they were not issued
for collectors.
In 1957, Great Britain resumed the issue of sovereigns for the bullion
and collector market. In 1989, 4 specially designed gold coins (£5, £2,
£1 and £½) were issued to commemorate the 500th anniversary of the Gold
Sovereign. |
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