200 Years of the Gold Sovereign

To celebrate the 200th Anniversary of the First Modern Sovereign, the 2017 proof half sovereigns feature a remastered version of the original, 1817 St George and the Dragon design. The design shows the garter border and inscription HONI SOIT QUI MAL Y PENSE, which has not been used on sovereigns since 1820.

Honi Soit Qui Mal Y Pense

The garter inscription on the reverse reads "Honi soit qui mal y pense", which is French for "Shame be to him who thinks evil of it".

This is the motto of the Order of the Garter, the highest order of chivalry in the UK. Read more about it on our blog here.

Mintage

The proof half sovereigns have a mintage figure of 5,100 coins. This includes coins issued as part of sets. No more than 2,500 proof half sovereigns will be issued in their individual presentation boxes.

We received our first allocation on 11th November, 2016.

Obverse

The obverse notably features the date on it. This is the first time it has appeared on the obverse of a sovereign since 1887.

The portrait of Queen Elizabeth II was designed by Jody Clark. It is the fifth coinage portrait. The coin bears the inscription:

ELIZABETH II·DEI·GRA·REG·FID·DEF·2017

The engraver's initials JC are below the truncated neck.

Reverse

Benedetto Pistrucci's original 1817 St George and the Dragon design is featured on the reverse of the coin. The inscription sits within the wide garter:

HONI SOIT QUI MAL Y PENSE

The inscription and the garter are associated with The Order of the Garter, Britains oldest and noblest order. Whilst the 2017 reverse is clearly a modernised version of the original 1817 sovereign, two rather tiny but important elements have been omitted; the engravers initials B.P. and William Wellesley Pole's initials W W P, the Master of the Royal Mint's initials on the buckle of the strap.

Specification

Diameter	19.3mm
Weight	3.98g
Fineness	0.916
Alloy	22 carat gold
Obverse Designer	Jody Clark
Reverse Designer	Bendetto Pistrucci
Mint	Royal Mint
Mintage	2,500
Finish	Proof

Terms of Sale - Key Points

You can find more information on payment and identification requirements.

Bullion coins are provided as is and on occasion may have some minor scratches or edge knocks. These are not regarded as faulty or damaged goods as their precious metal content and value as a bullion coin is not affected. Any coin sold for a value less than a 180% intrinsic is considered a bullion coin.

Gold investment products are VAT free. Silver investment products are inclusive of VAT at the current rate unless otherwise stated.

All investment products are based on the live precious metal price. Prices will be fixed once the item has been added to the basket and recalculates just before checking out.

If your product is not a graded coin and is considered a bullion item, it should be noted that these are bought and sold on low premiums over their precious metal content and not solely for aesthetic purposes; therefore, some products may have edge knocks and/or marks. These edge knocks and marks do not alter the specifications of the coins.

Please note that all investment products are exempt from the Consumer Contracts (Information, Cancellation and Additional Charges) Regulations 2013 and therefore customers do not have the right to cancel their order once the order has been accepted. If customers no longer wish to go ahead with their investment purchase, there is an option to sell the products back to Chard (1964) Ltd instead. View our current buy back prices.

View our full Terms & Conditions.

Delivery Information

We aim to dispatch orders within 48 hours of receiving cleared funds. Our standard delivery methods are as follows.

Orders over £60 - Fully Insured Delivery.

Within the UK and BFPO - Next day fully insured and tracked. Delivery starts from £6.

Orders under £60

Within the UK and BFPO - Royal Mail 2nd Class. Your order will normally arrive within 2-3 working days. Delivery starts from £3.50.

If you wish to have your order sent by an alternative method (e.g., Saturday Guaranteed) please contact +441253343081 for more information. Please note, we will not dispatch high value orders over a bank holiday weekend.

For international delivery, please check with your local customs office for more information on custom duty and taxes.

Full delivery information can be found by clicking here.

Postal Insurance

We offer fully insured delivery on all special delivery options. We do need to pass on the cost of this insurance as it soon adds up shipping high value gold and silver products.

Orders under £1500 there is no additional fee.
Orders over £1500 we charge a fee in order to cover the increasing costs of insurance. For every £1500 we apply a £1 fee.

If you require any assistance, please do not hesitate to call the showroom on +441253343081 and one of our team can discuss your purchase.

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2017 Gold Half Sovereign Elizabeth II Proof