1937 Sovereign Specimen Set For Sale

[HighlandTiger]

Just spotted this on the bay. First time I have ever seen the full set of one of the rarest sovs ever.

I wonder what the reserve is and if it will sell,

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Rare-1937-Sovereign-/331826420278?hash=item4d42655a36:g:uZUAAOSwJQdXB~2J

 

[sovereignsteve]

5001 sets produced, only in proof.

I would be wary, that £5 doesn't look like it's ever been a proof even allowing for it being "mounted".

Let's be serious here, who's going to take a proof £5 out of a limited set and dangle it from some kind of mount in order to ruin it?

I don't know what the reserve is likely to be but IMO it's more than fully priced at £5k

[Kman]

5 minutes ago, sovereignsteve said:

5001 sets produced, only in proof.

I would be wary, that £5 doesn't look like it's ever been a proof even allowing for it being "mounted".

Let's be serious here, who's going to take a proof £5 out of a limited set and dangle it from some kind of mount in order to ruin it?

I don't know what the reserve is likely to be but IMO it's more than fully priced at £5k

Would you perhaps question the £5 as being genuine? it certainly doesn't look like this one in terms of finish

 

 

[sovereignsteve]

23 minutes ago, Kman said:

Would you perhaps question the £5 as being genuine? it certainly doesn't look like this one in terms of finish

 

 

I am certainly suspicious. It doesn't add up. I don't see how you could mistreat a large coin on a mount enough to make it look like that, having looked like the other 3 coins originally. How can you get from a shiny proof background to an even, tatty finish with mechanical damage only? Unless someone has tried to "clean" it with some kind of aggressive chemical?

[metalslug]

The £5 certainly looks dodgy, although with it once being mounted maybe the detailing has just worn away.

Most people bidding will be just after the sovereign.

This year the price for the 1937 sovereign seems to have jumped, remember looking at one graded PR62 for just over £2000 last year and now on ebay for a similar grade people are asking £4000.

It's actually cheaper to just buy the £2 in a similar grade with more gold content and still the same mintage of 5001

 

[HighlandTiger]

Mmmmmmmm. The chances of someone creating a 1937 £5 sov fake is fairly low.

However there is a single example of a matt proof £5 sov to my knowledge. Could this be number 2?

Just a thought......

The coin does look very similar to the only matt coin set known

http://www.coinnews.net/2011/03/15/baldwins-london-auction-features-rare-king-george-vi-gold-four-coin-proof-set/

 

 

Edit : turns out there are two sets not one....

 

[sovereignsteve]

Yes, well researched. I was aware there was supposed to have been a matt proof produced but have never seen mention or photo of any in the mainstream.

Possible but it's still unlike any previous matt proofs I've seen.

But why do you think the chance of fakes is low? There are plenty of other examples and it is a relatively rare coin.

[HighlandTiger]

1 minute ago, sovereignsteve said:

Possible but it's still unlike any previous matt proofs I've seen.

If you read the blurb in the article I linked to, it says 

 

In 1936, when the new designs were in gestation, numismatic photography was in its infancy. The reflective properties in the gold metal used to mint coinage made it impossible to generate a clear image of each coin. The Royal Mint successfully experimented with matt finishes produced from a sand-blasting process to generate these pre-production coins which were used to advertise new coins to the public.

It appears they were using a new experimental techniques to create this matt finish, and so it may not look like other matt proofs.

Perhaps someone is going to get a buy of the century if itt turns out there is a third matt set out there in coin land.

[Kman]

Id like to get one of these eventually, maybe a half sovereign.. what ever is cheapest 

Do any of you guys have one? 

[metalslug]

I have the 1937 £2.

Am looking at getting the half sovereign eventually

I regret not buying the sovereign last year when the prices were a little bit more reasonable.

The £5 on it's own in decent condition is 4-5k, so way out of my league.

 

[Kman]

6 minutes ago, metalslug said:

I have the 1937 £2.

Am looking at getting the half sovereign eventually

I regret not buying the sovereign last year when the prices were a little bit more reasonable.

The £5 on it's own in decent condition is 4-5k, so way out of my league.

 

Damn, this combined with seeing the King George IV crown indicates you must have some collection.. colour me jealous. 

[metalslug]

15 minutes ago, Kman said:

Damn, this combined with seeing the King George IV crown indicates you must have some collection.. colour me jealous. 

I do have quite a few high grade coins now, but I only started collecting numi coins from last year so hope to add many more over the next few years.

Made a few mistakes buying cheaper coins over last few years.

Am now following the quality over quantity rule.