Modern Sovereign

The modern gold sovereign first made its appearance in the summer of 1817. Reviving a coin name used by the Tudor monarchs and featuring a classical inspired St George and the dragon design by the gifted Italian artist Benedetto Pistrucci, it was this coin that would go on to become pre-eminent during the nineteenth century. Trusted and accepted across the globe, the sovereign was the economic lifeblood of international commerce and represented the power of an Empire at its height. Whilst the extravagance of a circulating gold coinage could not survive the First World War, its story is one of endurance and it was reborn in the twentieth century as a bullion coin for the international market and as a much-loved proof coin for collectors. Follow the story of the modern sovereign in the pages below.