What is a gold sovereign worth?

Discussion in 'Gold Coins' started by stackmans, Aug 30, 2018.

  1. stackmans

    stackmans Active Member

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    As the title says. I'm in the market for a sovereign and I am wondering what to pay for one? I am aware that they carry 7.315g of pure gold and at today's spot is worth $388(ish) by weight. I don't really care about the quality/grading/rarity of the coin, the cheapest dinged up coin would do me just fine.

    What is a fair price for one? Any value difference between British and Australian? Any traps for young players I need to consider?

    Thanks for your advice.
     
  2. serial

    serial Well-Known Member Silver Stacker

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    Sovereigns always get a premium, they have to be holded, bent, cut or heavily worn to go for spot or less
    then you have other factors that affect premium
    Australian sovereigns are more popular, earlier ones also get a higher premium eg Victorian sovereigns vs Georgian you will always do better with the Victorians (subject to key dates)
    then you have condition, any Australian sovereign graded ms64 or higher is a rare beast and au55 or higer will get a premium based on condition
    then you have to consider the rarity of the date and mint mark, eg perth mint sovereigns tend to be rarer to find, shield so9vereigns are more desirable as most were exported for traded and have had to come back
    basically sovereigns can range from $388 - $1mil+!!!
    good luck, it is a slippery slope buying sovereigns as they are great to own and addictive to collect
     
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  3. JulieW

    JulieW Well-Known Member Silver Stacker

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    Agree completely with Serial above. Very addictive!

    If you can find $388 sovereigns then they'll be beaten about - perhaps with jewellers solder or drilled holes etc.

    Rule of thumb I'd expect to currently pay from $420 - $440 for "bullion" grade, and more for good quality collectables. Not to say that good quality 'bullion' aren't collectable of course.
     
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  4. Roswell Crash Survivor

    Roswell Crash Survivor Well-Known Member Silver Stacker

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    I purchased two 1926 Sovereigns for A$716 (A$358 ea.) back in July 2011 from the previous iteration of SilverStackers.

    No drill holes or solder, only some scratches. Today, that sounds like a screaming bargain.

    (Some perspective: back in July 2011, spot gold was close to US$1,600/oz but AUD/USD was ~1.10; so the spot value of the gold in a Sovereign was ~A$342)
     
  5. SlyGuy

    SlyGuy Active Member

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    I always just multiply current gold spot by 0.2354 to find the price of a sovereign... since that's the number of ounces in one full sov.

    Premium will vary a bit based on locality and hot/cold gold market. In the US, at least since I've been picking them up, a premium on full Sovereigns is generally around 5% or $15-20. Most shops or dealers will ask for roughly 5% or more as the premium, but you can often get it to around 3% or $10 premium, esp if you are buying a few and not picky about the condition of the coins. I consider 3% premium or less to be a good deal... maybe 2% if they are heavily circulated or I'm willing to buy in any quantity.

    Reputable bullion shops are often your best bet... you can find circulated random year sovereigns almost at spot when on sale:
    https://sdbullion.com/british-royal-mint-gold-sovereign-coin-average-circulated-random-year
    https://www.jmbullion.com/great-britain-gold-sovereign-vy/

    ...They are nice coins if you like .9167 gold. That is my preference since 999 gold scratches easily and usually has significantly higher premium (esp for pieces under 1oz). I will still buy 999 gold coins and bars if the premium is as low or lower than sovereigns, but that is very rarely the case unless you find someone in a hurry to unload gold. For silver, I'm the opposite... since it has a decent amount of its value from industrial and is a harder metal, I usually go with 999 only.

    I buy sovereigns mainly since they have cheaper premiums than the pre-1933 US gold half eagle 9167 coins that are roughly in the category (nearly the same size, price range and gold content). Those were the only two coins I really found that fit my criteria of being 9167 gold, low premium, and roughly quarter ounce gold. I'm of the same mindset as you: gold is gold and it is all valued pretty much at melt price.

    Be very mindful that there are a decent amount of old HALF sovereign brit and brit colony coins also (half the weight, half face value, and half gold value... usually much higher premium). You have to watch out for those, esp when they are in a capsule or a cardboard case in a coin shop... the diameter of the half is a bit smaller but not drastically different. I almost bought one by accident when I first began collecting these (the shop had it tagged overpiced, so it looked like a low end price for a full sov). There are even quarter sovereigns minted in newer years, but those are much smaller and usually BU or better, so you won't mistake those. For circulated ones (1817-1914), there were just half and full gold sovs. There are also many "jeweler copy" of full sovereigns, which shouldn't get much/any premium... usually spot price only. You don't want to buy those halfs or jeweler copies by mistake when you are trying to buy a real full sovereign. The jeweler copies aren't the end of the world (provided they aren't fake gold) since sovs don't have much premium to begin with, but you obviously don't want to buy a half sov when you pay for a full sov.

    GL, they are fun coins for sure.
     
    Last edited: Dec 16, 2018
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  6. malachii

    malachii Well-Known Member

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    Also remember (if you are in Australia) they attract a 10% GST.

    malachii
     
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  7. whay

    whay Well-Known Member

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    There are also the £2 Double Sovereigns which have a diameter of 28.4 millimeters and a weight of 15.98 grams. They are crafted from 22 carat gold and the actual gold content on the coin is 0.4707 troy ounces.

    While the £2 Double Sovereign is a beautiful coin, it was quite large and heavy for a currency coin. This has made the Double Sovereign a popular choice among investors and coin collectors but it has greatly deterred its usage as a common coin for use in trade.
     
  8. SlyGuy

    SlyGuy Active Member

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    Yep, those doubles are cool and seem a whole lot rarer... and much higher premium than the sov or half sov. I've only ever seen them at coin shows a couple times... and never priced for any less than about a 50% premium (where basic regular full gold sovereign has typically 5% or less premium).

    The whole reason I chose sovereigns for most of my gold is 9167 and low premium, and I just buy the basic ones. My objective sure rules out any doubles (and most halfs). However, for people who like them as more of a numismatic collection objective, the double sov or some of the more valuable years and mint marks and portraits might be fun.
     
  9. slide95

    slide95 New Member

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    I had a momentary phase with sovereigns. lol
    I got a 1965 1966 1968 and a 1980
    These are the years myslef, and my siblings were born. (I am not telling you which one is mine! lol)
    I left it at that though. Too adictive. lol
     
  10. slide95

    slide95 New Member

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    These are the years myslef, and my siblings were born. (I am not telling you which one is mine! lol










    Bluestacks Kodi Lucky Patcher
     
  11. dross

    dross Active Member

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    As this is an old thread can any of the sovereign collectors / regular buyers let me know whats would be considered reasonable at the moment. Talking about VF, VF+, EF Lustrous uunc quality rang but nothing really the rare please.
     
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  12. Holdfast

    Holdfast Well-Known Member Silver Stacker

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  13. lunar

    lunar Member

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    My own guide has been:
    VF spot-3%
    EF spot
    UNC spot+3%

    Perhaps $10 more for the P mint mark recognised branding or for true uncleaned lustre. If slabbed, I ignore gradings. Many of NGC or PCGS MS62 and MS63 coins were graded very leniently.
     
  14. lunar

    lunar Member

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    Another simple way of valuing Australian minted sovereigns is by weight. Today there might be 10 sovereigns surviving in Australia for every person and so they are by no means rare.

    7.96g <=spot, Not viable to sell 22 carat commercially so to refinery
    7.97g =spot, Minor wear under loupe on garter/sword and hair/jewerly
    7.98g >=spot
    8.00g =spot, Modern proof
     
  15. Aurora et luna

    Aurora et luna Well-Known Member Silver Stacker

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    You are quoting a lot of nonsense!
    There's definitely not 250 million Sovs in Australia (10 Sov per person in Australia)
    I would be very very surprised if there was even 25 million.
    And anyone who sends a Sov to the refinery because it has a bit of wear (7.96 grams) is not very bright either.
    You might want to pay spot or less however your chances of picking one up are slim to none unless you are a coin dealer or buying from an uninformed collector!
     
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  16. heartastack

    heartastack Well-Known Member Silver Stacker

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    250 million.. lol that's like 2000 tonnes of gold floating around the country in the form of Sovs o_O (if my math correct)
     
  17. serial

    serial Well-Known Member Silver Stacker

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    image.jpg
     
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  18. lunar

    lunar Member

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    400 million full sovereigns were minted in Australia.

    I was weighing sovereigns this morning. 7.96g isn't pretty and 7.95g is beaten with an ugly stick.

    I'm not buying gold at the moment (instead focused on low mintage silver) but another in my network is buying VF sovereigns for spot+1.5%. Plentiful and GST constrains their market.
     
  19. serial

    serial Well-Known Member Silver Stacker

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    Lunar, you have to be a troll
     
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  20. heartastack

    heartastack Well-Known Member Silver Stacker

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    I eat my words ant tip my hat to you....




    Capture.PNG
     
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