Coins showing Henry VII, Victoria and Charles I 'to sell for £1m'
Three historic British coins showing Henry VII on a throne, a 20-year-old Queen Victoria and Charles I holding a sword and olive branch are tipped to sell for nearly £1million altogether
- The coins, all depicting past monarchs, are from the 15th, 17th and 19th centuries
- Auctioneers say the coins are a ‘veritable holy grail’ for collectors
Three rare British coins depicting past monarchs are tipped to sell for almost £1 million when they go under the hammer later this month.
Heritage Auctions has gathered the three extremely rare pieces – from the 15th, 17th and 19th centuries – for a bidding event later this month.
The three pieces depict monarchs Henry VII, a young Queen Victoria and Charles I.
Expected to get the most attention is the 1492 sovereign of 20 shillings depicting Henry VII, which is expected to fetch £390,000 when it is put up for sale.
It depicts the late 15th century monarch seated on a throne, and a large royal shield set atop a Tudor rose within floral treasure.
The Henry VII fine gold sovereign of 20 shillings, which is expected to fetch £390,000 when it goes under the hammer. It depicts the monarch sitting on a throne
The ‘Victoria Una and the Lion’ five pound coin depicts the monarch leading a lion representing the British Empire. It is expected to sell for £350,000
The reverse side of the coin depicts the young royal, who was 20 years old at the time it was struck
Also going under the hammer is a 1839 gold ‘Victoria Una and the Lion’ five pounds coin, which carries an estimate of £350,000.
It shows the 20-year-old monarch, who ascended to the throne two years earlier, leading a lion which represents the British Empire.
The reverse of the coin, of which only 400 were struck, carries a portrait of Victoria’s head.
The coin was created by coin maker William Wyon, who was official chief engraver at the Royal Mint from 1828 until his death in 1851.
He depicted Queen Victoria as Una, the protagonist in the first volume of the Elizabethan poem ‘The Faerie Queen’ by Edmund Spencer.
In the 1590 poem, Una saves her parents’ castle from a dragon and is the embodiment of ‘truth’.
The Charles I coin (left) and Victoria coin (right) in protective packaging. Auctioneers Heritage say the items are a ‘veritable holy grail’ for collectors
A coveted Charles I gold Triple Unite coin has been valued at £195,000. The inscription reads: ‘let God rise and let his enemies be scattered’
The other side of the Charles I coin depicts the king holding a sword and an olive branch
Spencer’s work proved so popular with one of Victoria’s ancestors, Queen Elizabeth I, that she granted him a pension for life amounting to £50 a year (£8,600 today).
The final coin offered is an English Civil War Charles I gold Triple Unite (1643), which shows his bust holding a sword and olive branch.
On the reverse is the inscription ‘let God rise and let his enemies be scattered’.
The coin, considered one of the finest of its type, could fetch £195,000 ($250,000).
A spokesperson for Heritage, based in Dallas, Texas, said: ‘This is a veritable holy grail for collectors of early British numismatics.’
The trio of coins, with a combined estimate of £935,000, have been consigned by private collectors.
The sale takes place on August 17.
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