About the 1887 Gold Sovereign Victoria Jubilee Head St George Melbourne Mint
940,000 bullion sovereigns were minted In 1887.
The obverse design is by Sir Joseph Edward Boehm and the reverse by Benedetto Pistrucci .
Although 940,000 sovereigns were minted, many were melted down when sent overseas. This sovereign is therefore a little harder to source.
Spink Ref: 3867A/B.
Front: Hover to enlarge
Back: Hover to enlarge
High grade examples of this coin are sought after by collectors.
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Spink 3867A vs 3867B
Further Information
1887 is a key year for the gold sovereign. A total of 7 variations were produced, the most for any year.
• 1887 Young head Sydney mint shield
• 1887 Young head Melbourne mint shield
• 1887 Young head Sydney mint St. George
• 1887 Young head Melbourne mint St. George
• 1887 Jubilee head London mint St. George
• 1887 Jubilee head Sydney mint St. George
• 1887 Jubilee head Melbourne mint St. George
Victoria 'yound head' sovereigns were minted in Sydney and Melbourne, using both the St. George & Dragon and the shield design. It was the last time the shield design by Jean Baptiste Merlen was used.
Shield back sovereigns were primarily issued for export to India as they were accustomed to that design.
With Queen Victoria entering her jubilee year, the obverse design also changed from the 'young head' by William Wyon to the 'jubilee head' by Sir Joseph Edward Boehm. The jubilee head soveign was minted in London, Melbourne and Syney, all carrying Pistrucci's St. George reverse design.
There are no official records that separate the mintage figures for Melbourne mint 1887 shield and St. George sovereigns. Therefore, the mintage number quoted includes both types. All that is known is that the majority of sovereigns produced were of the St. George & Dragon design.
Fast forward 115 years to Queen Elizabeth's Golden Jubilee year in 2002 and we see the one-off re-introduction of a sheild design sovereign.
Between 1887 to 1890, Melbourne mint Sovereigns show a repositioned legend 'G:' of 'D: G:' on the obverse face. Spink identifies the variance using the references 3867A & 3867B. If you refer to our comparision image, you'll see that the 'G:' is closer to Victoria's crown in 3867.
In 1887, Spink considers 3867B to be the more collectable version.
Details
| Label | Detail |
|---|---|
| Bullion Mintage | 940,000 |
| Obverse Design | Victoria (Jubilee Head) |
| Obverse Text | VICTORIA D:G:BRITT:REG:F:D: |
| Reverse Design | St. George |
| Reverse Text | Null |
