Elizabeth I fine gold Sovereign sixth issue, mm hand - rarest mint mark XF40

Elizabeth I (1558-1603), fine gold Sovereign of Thirty Shillings, sixth issue (1583-1600), full facing robed figure of Queen seated on large throne, lis headed pillar either side, throne back of pellets in hatching, five small pellets up each side of throne back, portcullis below Queen, tressure and beaded border surrounding, Latin legend and outer beaded border on both sides, initial mark hand (1590-92), struck over crescent over scallop both sides, +ELIZABETH D; G; ANG; FRA; ET. HIB; REGINA. rev. quartered shield at centre of ornate rose, beaded circle surrounding, +A; DNO' FACTV; EST. ISTVD. ET. EST. MIRAB' IN OCVL; NRS; 15.10g (Brown and Comber A24; Schneider 782; Hill H59 R5; N.2003; S.2529). Weakly struck in parts with wear to high points, flan crack to right of Queen and on corresponding part of reverse, all other important details clear including the mint marks, has been straight graded by NGC as XF40 and very rare with only eight examples known to survive of this mint mark, the rarest for this issue of the fine gold sovereign of this reign.

NGC certification 2921417-001

The mint mark of hand is one of the rarest for the fine gold sovereign, far eclipsed by the number of mint mark crosslet, A, scallop and tun as well as crescent, and is probably on par with the number available of the earliest mint mark lis pieces of the denomination's earliest issue of striking of which there is only a single digit number available.

The fine gold output of mintmark hand amounts to £40,778 which would have included the Angel coinage too, and was issued from the 1^st February 1590 until 31st January 1592. The denomination also named officially as a Double Noble passed for Thirty Shillings and for mint mark hand usually seen with the hand mark struck over the top and changed from the crescent mint mark dies which were in turn changed from scallop marked dies showing remarkable longevity or suggesting low mintages of crescent and hand mint marks. Brown and Comber recorded this coin as A24 in their work on the Elizabethan gold coinage in the British Numismatic Journal of 1989 and referenced only one privately held example in the Ryan Collection which is not this piece. We can only trace three others going through for sale in the last thirty years and cannot see any non-overstruck mint mark hand pieces which seem unlikely to exist (B&C A25 based on sole mention of mint mark hand in the Spink Numismatic Circular article of April 1938 by Sidney Whicher in an article that was only about the throne backs rather than mint marks), especially as the Holloway collection of these coins sold a few years back did not have B&C A25 either which was the most complete collection ever formed.

The abbreviated Latin legend translates as on obverse "Elizabeth by the Grace of God, Queen of England, France and Ireland," and on the reverse "This is the Lord's doing and it is marvellous in our eyes," a Psalm from the Bible.

The fine gold Sovereign of Elizabeth I was a highly respected coin at the time and was famed in the acting world of the time of William Shakespeare, as the coin of choice to be honoured with should the Queen attend a performance personally. Traditionally the Queen would honour the playwright and the star of the show with her favour reflected in the presenting of a fine gold Sovereign. We have such evidence of this in the will of the Gentleman Actor Augustine Phillips of Mortlake Surrey who was one of the first to rise to such a social status in his profession. From his will dated 13^th May 1605 we can see fine gold Sovereign presented described thus "I give and bequeath to my fellow William Shakespeare a XXX^s piece in gould, To my fellow Henry Condell one other xxx^s piece in gould." Such a coin of honour being highly revered and not to be spent in the lifetime of the recipient.