Gold half sovereign sells for £1,600 at Lichfield auction

Rare 1838 shield back coin depicts the young Queen Victoria

A RARE gold coin sent to auction in Lichfield has soared to £1,600.

The 1838 gold half sovereign was the first half sovereign issued during the reign of Queen Victoria and bears the first and smallest young portrait of the queen on the obverse with a garnished shield on the reverse.

The coin, pictured above, was consigned at The Auction Café in Market Street, LIchfield, and went under the hammer at The Lichfield Auction Centre on Monday, April 14.

Also recently valued at The Auction Café was a UK 1980 gold proof four coin set with certificate of authenticity from the Royal Mint.

The set fetched £4,000 in the same sale on April 14.

"Depicting the young queen, this 1838 coin was the first half sovereign minted for Victoria," said specialist Phil Bridge.

"A huge amount of coins were lost due to being scrapped for bullion when gold prices started to escalate in 2011.

"We expected this example to perform well at auction but its rarity combined with it being in very good condition attracted lots of interest at auction and it made £1,600.

"A phenomenal amount of money for a half sovereign coin.

"I'm looking forward to discovering more treasures out there at my next valuations."

The Auction Café is open seven days a week, from 9am-4pm Monday to Saturday and 10am-3pm on Sundays, with weekly valuations on three of those days.

Free jewellery valuations are offered every Tuesday, valuations of fine art, ceramics, glass and silver on Thursday and specialist valuations on Wednesdays - click here for upcoming dates.

Phil Bridge will be offering free valuations of coins and banknotes at The Auction Café from 10am-12.30pm on Wednesdays April 16 and May 7 between 10am and 12.30pm both days.

Valuation appointments with Phil are also available at The Lichfield Auction Centre (call 01543 251081 or email office@richardwinterton.co.uk) and The Tamworth Auction Rooms (call 01827 217746 or email tamworth@richardwinterton.co.uk).