Over 100 years ago, the First World War ravaged many countries. It was a conflict that claimed the lives of thousands. This 1914 George V Sovereign is a tribute to the brave men and women who served on the front line. It also marks the end of a golden era, quite literally, as precious metals such as gold began to be replaced by banknotes, in a bid to help fund the war effort. Struck from the finest gold, the coin represents an incredible period of history and is an asset to any collection.

During the second half of the nineteenth century and the beginning of the twentieth century, The Royal Mint established branch mints across the world near new sources of gold discoveries, rather than shipping the heavy metal to London. Three of these branch mints opened in Australia.

This Sovereign was struck at the Melbourne branch of The Royal Mint and has a distinctive M mint mark to denote this.

This ‘Extremely Fine’ Sovereign features a portrait of King George V on the coin’s obverse, created by Bertram Mackennal – a highly regarded Australian artist and a favourite of the king – and Benedetto Pistrucci’s iconic St George and the dragon design on the reverse.

2,012,029 Sovereigns were produced at the Melbourne branch mint in this year.