Victoria Old Head Half Sovereign

Victoria Old Head Half Sovereign gold coin

All our pre-owned coins undergo strict quality checks by our team of experts to ensure their condition is excellent. The coins are issued without expensive presentation boxes to maximize the amount of gold for your money.

The obverse of the Victoria Old Head Half Sovereign features a mature Queen Victoria wearing a head veil, while the reverse displays the classic St.George and Dragon design by Benedetto Pistucci.

The coins will date between 1893-1901.

The picture illustrates the type of coin you’ll receive, not the exact item.

History and Mintage

The Victorian Half Sovereign was minted most years between 1838 and 1901 and therefore features all three Victoria portraits – The Young Head (up to 1887), the Jubilee Head (1887 – 1893) and finally the Old Head from 1893 to 1901. However we rarely see Victoria Young Head Half Sovereigns and premiums tend to reflect their scarcity when we do, so our coins will always feature the latter two portraits which strike a better balance between price and history. In this way, the coins appeal both as an investment and as a collector’s coin, increasing its demand. While a majority of Victorian Half Sovereigns we offer feature the standard St.George and Dragon on the reverse, some of the coins we get display the sought-after Shield back. Mintage was mostly from London, although occasional coins were produced in Australian Mints as part of the Empire.

The coins represent an era where Britain’s presence on the world stage was growing at a rapid rate with the expanding British Empire, scientific pioneering, industrial growth and technological advancements. Up until recently, Victoria held the accolade of being longest-serving British monarch in history, and only Queen Elizabeth has now passed this record. For Britain, it was a time of huge evolution, both with infrastructure projects like the London Underground, bridges and roads, and also social and morality issues. The UK closed its class gap, improved literacy rates dramatically and began eradicating poverty.

Our Expert Opinion

The Victoria Half Sovereign is one of the older coins we offer and its value reflects that. A very established coin with tremendous liquidity due to its desirability. Their diminutive size provides a great deal of versatility for the investor and also enables the more modest buyer to afford a number of coins. The Victoria Half Sovereign is perfect when combined with other tax-free gold coins from other periods such as the Edward Half Sovereign and the George V Gold Sovereign.