George III 1816 Pattern Half-Sovereign R5, crowned emblems NGC PF63

George III (1760-1820), Pattern gold Half-Sovereign, 1816, by Thomas Wyon utilising what was adopted as the Sixpence obverse, laureate head right, date below, legend and toothed border surrounding, GEOR: III D: G: BRITT: REX F: D:, rev. struck en medaille, crowned national emblems, thistle, rose and shamrock, legend commences lower left, BRITANNIARUM REX FID: DEF:, edge milled, weight 3.96g (WR 203 R5 this coin; Montagu 561; Murdoch 196; Nobleman 57 this coin; Selig 1174 this coin). Toned with a series of black marks and flecks mainly on the obverse, otherwise has been slabbed and graded by NGC as PF63 and extremely rare, with a great provenance.

NGC Certification 2124454-046.

This is the only example graded at NGC.

As with the gold Sovereign a short series of patterns were produced for the Half-Sovereign by Thomas Wyon junior with either emblems crowned like we have herewith for offer, or a shield of arms within a garter, all dated 1816. There is also a version of this pattern dated later as 1820 but by that time the new currency gold coinage had become well established with the designs of Benedetto Pistrucci in preference to Thomas Wyon's work. Wyon's obverse was used on the silver currency of Sixpence and Shilling and he sadly died at a young age of only 25 from consumption in 1817 so he would not even have seen the pattern dated 1820. This charming series of patterns are all extremely rare and hardly ever offered for sale.

Ex Nobleman, Baron Philippe de Ferrari La Renotiere, Sotheby, 27^th March 1922, lot 57.

Ex Virgil M. Brand, collection dispersed post mortem from 1932.

Ex Captain K. J. Douglas-Morris, Sotheby, 26^th November 1974, lot 134.

Ex Herman Selig Collection, part II Coins of George III, Spink Coin auction 131, 2^nd March 1999, lot 1174.

Ex Spink Numismatic Circular, June 1999, item 2386.