A gold sovereign is a British gold coin, first issued in 1489 for Henry VII, generally with a value of twenty shillings or one pound. The name "sovereign" related to the majestic and impressive size and portraiture of the coin, the earliest of which showed the king facing, seated on a throne, while the reverse shows the Royal coat of arms on a shield surrounded by a Tudor double rose. These original sovereigns were 23-carat gold and weighed 240 grains (ten pennyweights or one-half of a troy ounce). Henry VIII reduced the purity to 22 carats, which eventually became the standard; the weight of the sovereign was repeatedly lowered until when it was revived after the Great Recoinage law of 1816, the gold content was fixed at the present 0.2354 ounces.
Sovereigns were discontinued after 1604, being replaced by Unites, and later by Laurels, and then guineas. Production of sovereigns restarted in 1817, their reverse design being a portrayal of Saint George killing a dragon, engraved by Benedetto Pistrucci. This same design is still in use on British gold sovereigns, although different reverse designs have been used during the reigns of William IV, Victoria, George IV, and Elizabeth II.
They were produced in large quantities until World War I, at which time the UK came off the gold standard. From then until 1932, sovereigns were produced only at branch mints at Melbourne, Sydney, Perth, Bombay, and Pretoria (except for some in 1925 produced in London). The last regular issue was in 1932 (at Pretoria). Production resumed in 1957, and they were produced most years as bullion until 1982. From there to 1999, proof only versions were produced, but since 2000, bullion sovereigns have been minted.
In summary, sovereigns were produced as follows:
For a list of sovereign mintages since 1887, see the link below.
Half sovereigns, two pound double sovereigns, and five pound quintuple sovereigns coins were also produced.
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