1 Guinea - George III Pattern (1782)
Circulating version: 1782 1 Guinea - George III Pattern
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Year | 1782 |
| Denomination | 1 Guinea |
| Face value | £1.05 |
| Mint | Royal Mint · Llantrisant |
| Circulation | Non-circulating |
| Demonetised | Yes |
| Composition | Gold (.9167) (917/1000 fine) |
| Shape | Round |
| Edge | Lettered |
| Grade scale | UK (EF/UNC) |
Right effigy of King George III surrounded by the inscription "GEORGIVS III DEI GRATIA" (George III by the grace of God).This is an automatic translation. The original text is:Effigie droite du roi George III entourée par l'inscription "GEORGIVS III DEI GRATIA" (George III par la grâce de Dieu).
Coat of arms of the United Kingdom during the reign of George III.This is an automatic translation. The original text is:Armoiries du Royaume-Uni durant le règne de George III.
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Daily limit reached1 Guinea - George III Pattern value by grade
Realised auction prices · ⭐ Pro Expand rows for individual sale records| Grade | Latest | Median | 30d Δ | All-time range | Sales (1yr) | Total sales | Last sale | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BU | £1,000.00 🔒 | £1,000.00 (1) | – | £1,000.00 – £1,000.00 | 0 | 1 | 02-03-2014 | |
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About the 1782 1 Guinea - George III Pattern
The 1782 1 Guinea - George III Pattern is a collector 1 guinea coin, struck in 91.67% gold. Reverse design: Coat of arms of the United Kingdom during the reign of George III.This is an automatic translation. The original text is:Armoiries du Royaume-Uni durant le règne de George III.
It is no longer legal tender, so its value is to collectors only.
Common questions
How much is the 1782 1 Guinea - George III Pattern worth?
The 1782 1 Guinea - George III Pattern has a price in one grade on MyCoinage so far: £1,000 in BU, the median of its verified sales.
What is the 1782 pattern guinea?
A gold guinea-sized piece engraved by Lewis Pingo for Lord Mahon, later the third Earl Stanhope, with small raised letters on its edge. Sincona says these pieces were not patterns for a proposed coinage but were made to demonstrate Lord Mahon's theory on how to prevent forgery.
Who was Lord Mahon?
Charles Stanhope, known as Lord Mahon until he succeeded as the third Earl Stanhope in 1786. Wikipedia describes him as a statesman, inventor and scientist, and he sat as member for High Wycombe from 1780, which covers the date of these pieces.
How rare is the 1782 pattern guinea?
Wilson and Rasmussen list the gold piece as number 100 with a rarity of R5, and Bull gives the same rating, according to Sincona. The example Sincona sold, graded NGC PF64 Cameo, was the plate coin for WR 100 and the finest NGC had certified.
Are there copper versions of the 1782 pattern guinea?
Yes. The catalogue has a separate entry for a copper striking dated 1782. The Royal Mint Museum also holds 1782 patterns in copper that Hocking describes as half guineas, one of them with MDCCLXXXII on the edge four times.
How is the 1782 1 Guinea - George III Pattern different from the circulating coin?
This is a collector version of the 1782 1 Guinea - George III Pattern, not the coin found in change. It is struck in 91.67% gold rather than copper.
History and design
Filing and rubbing gold from guineas remained a problem through George III's reign, the Royal Mint Museum says, and the protection of coin against forgery attracted inventors as well as the Mint. In 1782 Lewis Pingo, who had become Chief Engraver at the Mint in 1779, engraved a small series of trial pieces for Lord Mahon, the politician and inventor who later became the third Earl Stanhope. Sincona, cataloguing the gold example in its British Collection, says these were not intended as patterns for a new coinage but were made to demonstrate Mahon's theory of how forgery could be prevented by combining several techniques.
The gold guinea of 1782 is catalogued as Wilson and Rasmussen 100 and Bull 763, both at rarity R5. Sincona's example weighed 8.25 g, was graded NGC PF64 Cameo, and had passed through the Douglas-Morris collection in 1974 and the Selig collection in 1999; it is the plate coin for WR 100. No number struck is recorded.
The obverse carries a laureate bust of George III facing right. The distinctive feature is the edge, which carries a legend in small raised letters. The two sides are struck with the reverse inverted (die axis 6h). Wikipedia's article on Pingo notes that he made patterns for the guinea, seven shilling piece, penny and halfpenny of George III.
Collecting notes
Copper patterns dated 1782 also exist. Hocking's catalogue of the Royal Mint's collection lists three, which it calls half guineas, one with MDCCLXXXII (1782) on the edge four times and the others with plain edges. A copper striking is covered under the 1782 copper pattern guinea. Baldwin's notes that Eimer's study of the Pingo family records a related copper pattern dated 1781 with either a grained or lettered edge, so date, metal and edge should all be checked when attributing one.
Sources
The history, design, varieties and collecting notes on this page are drawn from these sources. Prices come from recorded sales, not from them.
- SINCONA British Collection, auction highlights, Sincona (read 12 Oct 2026)
- Charles Stanhope, 3rd Earl Stanhope, Wikipedia (read 12 Oct 2026)
- Lewis Pingo, Wikipedia (read 12 Oct 2026)
- Catalogue of the Coins, Tokens, Medals, Dies and Seals in the Museum of the Royal Mint, Vol. I Part I (Hocking, 1906), page 173, proofs and patterns of George III, Royal Mint Museum library (read 12 Oct 2026)
- George III, Royal Mint Museum (read 12 Oct 2026)
- George III, Copper Pattern Guinea, 1781, Baldwin's (read 12 Oct 2026)
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