United Kingdom Gold Sovereigns -- Date Set
1873

Owner Comments:

S-3858A, Marsh 112

Acquired from: Heritage
Means: Auction 61306, Lot 24009
Date: 23 January 2023

Critique: Decent looking example of this early Sydney sov. A bit scratchy on the neck, as usual for low MS grade coins. However, there's very little better to choose from. As of Jan 2023 only 12 of this date/mint have been graded in MS condition by NGC, with the sole Top Pop being only MS63. PCGS similarly shows only two graded MS63, with none higher. Over a million coins were minted, but for some reason they just didn't survive very well. Maybe times were tough in Oz in the 1870's, and coins got beat up quickly.
This coin was offered in a special auction of Top and near-Top Pop sovereigns, which seemed to attract quite a number of bidders. But they were mostly spending their money on the Top Pop examples, while ignoring coins like this one that were second or third tier. The fact that very few coins are graded higher didn't seem to matter. And the fact that none of these coins have been offered in a US auction in two years also did not generate any interest. So I got this one for somewhat less than I was willing to pay, and about 25% of what it lists for in the NGC world price guide. I got quite a few bargains at this auction -- for once I was at the right place at the right time!