Description
With the rising price of gold in the latter half of the first decade of the 21st century, sovereigns and half sovereigns had risen considerably in price. To ensure gold remained affordable for as many people as possible, the Royal Mint released a new denomination – the Quarter Sovereign – for the very first time in the year 2009.
This coin is the first new sovereign coin since the reign of Queen Victoria. Interestingly, it is an idea that had been proposed in Queen Victoria’s reign but it never went into production.
The first issue of the coin features Pistrucci’s Classical depiction and it is a testament to the quality of that design that it looks appropriate whether on the five pounds of 36mm diameter, or the quarter sovereign at 13.5mm.
The first type was produced in just six years: 2009, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2014 and 2015. The obverse portrait changed in 2015 creating a second type.
