![]() The reverse type is a shield bearing the royal arms, on a large double Tudor rose. It is from this image of the monarch or sovereign that the new coin gained its name - the sovereign. The obverse design showed the King seated facing on a throne, a very majestic image. This new coin weighed 240 grains which equals 0.5 troy ounces or 15.55 grams, and was made using the standard gold coinage alloy of 23 carat, equal to 95.83% fine. Now for the first time a coin denomination was issued with a value of one pound sterling. The pound sterling had been a unit of account for centuries, as had the mark. The gold sovereign came into existence in 1489 under King Henry VII. The Romans took a very practical view in exploiting natural resources in the areas of their conquest, and issued coins in gold, silver, and copper according to the resources of the region. From the death of Julius Caesar, gold coinage came to be an important part of the Roman coinage system. The early Roman Republic issued few coins in gold, their main coinage being in silver, with bronze or copper for small change. We feel tempted to add the joke that Cunobelin invented his own language which was named after him, although we cannot remember the name of the language, it is on the tip of our tongue! They also clearly show that the Celts used written language, even if other evidence is not extant. It constitutes a written record, as do all the other inscribed Celtic coins, however most Celtic coins are unfortunately uninscribed. It bears the inscription "CUNO" an abbreviation for Cunobelin, a chieftain of the Catuvellauni tribe. Please see the magnificent Celtic gold stater in our photograph. It is often stated that they left no written records, but this is inaccurate as some of their coins were inscribed. The Celts were here before the Romans, some became assimilated into Roman civilisation, others moved or were defeated. In Britain and elsewhere, a number of Celtic tribes issues coins in gold, silver, potin, and base metals. In most cases, ready availability of one metal rather than the other exerted a practical influence over the choice. Where the two existed side by side, then gold was usually considered the more important. Following this there have, for most of history, been regions which favoured silver and other nations which favoured gold as their main coinage and currency metal. The Greeks to the west of Ionia believed that silver should be the main metal used for coins. Shortly afterwards, in 546 B.C., Croeseus was captured by the Persians, who came to adopt gold as the main metal for their coins. Bi-metallic in the sense that there were gold coins and silver coins. KING MAXIMILIAN GOLD COIN WATCH HISTORY HOW TOThese gold deposits were believed to have originated by King Midas washing himself in the river to cleanse himself of his "golden touch" which had the inconvenient effect of turning even his food into gold.īy about 560 B.C., the Lydians and Ionians had learned how to separate the gold from the silver, so that King Croesus was able to issue the world's first bi-metallic coinage. These first coins were similar in composition to alluvial deposits found in the silt of the River Pactolus, which ran through the Lydian capital, Sardis. They were quite crude, and were made of electrum, a naturally occurring pale yellow mixture of gold and silver. In about 643 to 630 B.C., the Lydians had started to produce the first coins. Sovereign Information Sovereigns For Saleįour millennia of gold coin production and use - a brief history. ![]()
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