A privately held collection of more than 100 antique gold coins, dating from the late 17th to the 20th century and valued at more than $50,000 (£40,000), is set to be sold at auction.
The gold coins had been brought to an antique valuation event in Wardington, England, and are due to be auctioned later this month. Kingham’s auctioneers described the collection as a “treasure trove of gold.”
The collection contains gold coins from the reigns of seven British monarchs, including George III, George IV, William IV, and Queen Victoria. One of the rarest is a George IV half sovereign from 1821, which is expected to sell for between $2,500 to $3,100 (£2,000 to £2,500).
'Treasure trove' of gold coins found in Oxfordshire up for auction https://t.co/HheqjyIiYI pic.twitter.com/30uCIh2HHb
— Lisa Anzinger (@Li50307) May 6, 2024
It also includes a James II guinea from 1686, valued between $1,500 and $1,900 (£1,200 and £1,500), and a William and Mary Elephant & Castle guinea from 1689, which is expected to fetch between $1,300 to $1,700 and (£1,100 to £1,300).
Kinghams Auctioneers’ Steven Bruce said the collection had been amassed by a private collector “over many years,” as reported by the BBC.
“Some of the coins are of a very good grade,” Bruce revealed. “It is the best collection I have seen in my long career. The quantity and quality rarely come up for sale, particularly belonging to one owner.”
Bruce told the BBC the collection was expected to attract international interest from collectors and investors. In addition to the British coins, international currency, including from Napoleonic France and the early-20th-century US, features in the collection. The gold coin collection will be auctioned at the Gloucestershire-based auctioneers on May 23rd.
More gold coins found in England
Just two weeks ago, a buried hoard of gold and silver coins dating to the 16th and 17th centuries was found during renovation work on a cottage in Dorset, England.
The cache of more than a thousand gold and silver coins was discovered under an earth floor at South Poorton. One of the property’s new owners, Robert Fooks, dug with a pickaxe using torchlight when he found the trove in a pottery bowl.
Auctioneers hope to sell the collection for between $18,000 to $38,000 (£15,000 and £30,000).
Fooks’ wife, Becky, said her husband spent evenings in the cottage after work to increase the height of the room and install underfloor heating before they moved in. “He came across a mass of coins covered in mud and put them in a bucket,” she told the BBC.
“He didn’t stop and study them,” she added. “He’s a worker—when he’s intent on something he cracks on.”
Fooks said it was only the following day that she examined the coins and realized how old they were. “You can clearly see the date. Some of the gold coins were easy to read, really clean,” she told the BBC.
The gold coin hoard, discovered in October 2019, was returned to the couple a few weeks ago following expert analysis and legal work. The British Museum guessed they were deposited early in the English Civil War (1642-51) by a landowner trying to keep his wealth safe.
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