1 Guinea - George III 2nd portrait (1763–1764)

About the 1763 1 Guinea - George III

The 1763 1 Guinea - George III is a circulating 1 guinea coin issued from 1763 to 1764, struck in 91.67% gold. It weighs 8.4g and measures 24mm across. Reverse design: Crowned quartered shield showing the arms of England & Scotland, France, Ireland and Hanover, divided date above, legend around.

It is no longer legal tender (withdrawn 1891), so its value is to collectors only.

Common questions

History and design

The second portrait was used on the guinea for just two years, 1763 and 1764. There was no guinea dated 1762: Wikipedia gives the reign's dates as 1761, 1763 to 1779, 1781 to 1799 and 1813, and Clayton says the first shield type ran from 1761 to 1786 omitting only 1762 and 1780. The third portrait replaced this one in 1765.

No mintage is recorded for either year. CoinVarieties describes the type as rare compared with the later issues of the reign, and notes that by this time the Mint was producing nothing but gold and Maundy money, which left a serious shortage of everyday coin. The Royal Mint Museum says guineas and half guineas were struck for nearly every year between 1761 and 1799, while silver was largely absent.

The obverse shows a laureate head of the young king facing right with GEORGIVS III DEI GRATIA; the Royal Mint Museum notes small changes in the placing of the stops across George III's gold. It credits the early youthful busts to Richard Yeo, the Assistant Engraver, who did the work because Chief Engraver John Sigismund Tanner's eyesight was failing. Spink has catalogued a 1763 proof pattern guinea under Yeo's name.

The reverse keeps the ornate crowned shield of arms, with England and Scotland, France, Ireland and Hanover, the date split by the crown and M B F ET H REX F D B ET L D S R I A T ET E. The Royal Mint Museum notes that guineas with this elaborate shield were sometimes called rose guineas, though the reason for the name is unclear.

Collecting notes

Both dates are scarce. Heritage described its 1764 as a scarce two-year issue with no known Mint State survivors, and CoinVarieties records sales of a 1763 graded NGC VF25 and a 1764 at AU53, so circulated grades are what normally appear. Weigh any example against the standard of about 8.4 g and look closely at the rim, as guineas were often filed. The type sits between the one-year first portrait guinea of 1761 and the third portrait guinea.