A rare coin featuring Queen Elizbeth II’s uncle before he abdicated, has been sold for £1m, being the most expensive British coin ever sold.
The Edward VIII coin was bought by a private buyer in the United Kingdom. Earlier, this coin was in the hands of a collector in the United States of America, according to Royal Mint.
The Edward VIII coin Story
It is a 22-carat gold coin, which was a part of a small collection of trial sets that were crafted when Edward ascended the throne, but these coins were never released in the Public as Edward abdicated the throne to marry Wallis Simpson in 1936.
This coin is just 22mm in diameter and weighs around 8g, and it’s lighter and smaller than a normal size pound coin. The coin is also unique because the former king broke the tradition of alternate monarchs’ heads facing in the opposite direction as he liked his left profile more, the Royal Mint said.
The head of collector services, Rebecca Morgan, said: “The Edward VIII sovereign coin is one of the rarest of the coins in the world, so it’s no surprise that it went on to set a new record for a British coin. She said they are delighted to be able to relate such a particular coin for our collectors and bring it back to the United Kingdom, to create history with it once more.
Before this, the coin was sold for £516,000 to a collector in the US in 2014. Another Royal Mint official, Matt Curtis, said: “The Edward VIII coin is a part a numismatic legend, it belongs to a series of coins that were not meant to be released to the public and were hidden from the general public for years.
The sovereign coin is important in history not only because it’s rare but because it’s a part of an international story and has been appreciated by collectors in both the United Kingdom and the United States of America. The Edward VIII coin is thought to be one of just two coins that are owned by private owners, a Royal Mint official said. The remaining four coins created are in institutions and museums, including one at the Royal Mint Experience, where it’s on display to the public.
Final words
Edward VIII coin is one of the rarest coins of British history. This coin is rare because it was never meant to publish, and it was hidden from the public for years. Now it’s been sold for a record £1m. This coin has quite an interesting story, and that surely makes it one of the most collectible coins in the world.
