1 Shilling - George VI English crest without 'IND:IMP' (1949–1952)

One row for each year the 1 Shilling - George VI English crest – without 'IND:IMP' was struck. Prices are medians of verified sold listings matched to that year from the listing: circulated is worn condition up to Extremely Fine, uncirculated is About Uncirculated or better. A count in brackets means fewer than three sales behind the figure; a grey figure marked "type" is the median across every year, shown where that year has no sale of its own yet. Most types have been searched year by year only since October 2026, so later years are still filling in. Use the grade table below for a price by condition across all years.

About the 1949 1 Shilling - George VI English crest – without 'IND:IMP'

The 1949 1 Shilling - George VI English crest – without 'IND:IMP' is a circulating 1 shilling coin issued from 1949 to 1952, struck in copper-nickel. It weighs 5.66g and measures 23.5mm across. Reverse design: Crowned lion passant atop crown dividing date, legend above, denomination below.

A mintage of 19,328,405 is recorded for one date of this type; figures for each year are not held. It is no longer legal tender (withdrawn 1990), so its value is to collectors only.

Common questions

History and design

George VI's coins lost the words IND IMP at the start of 1949. A proclamation of 22 June 1948 had dropped Indiae Imperator, Emperor of India, from the royal title, and a further proclamation of 22 December 1948, in force from 1 January 1949, set out new designs without it. Wikipedia's florin article ties the change to India's independence.

The English shilling of this type was struck in cupro-nickel for three years. Coin Hunter and Wikipedia agree on 19,328,405 for 1949 and 9,956,930 for 1951. For 1950 Coin Hunter gives 19,243,872 and Wikipedia 19,261,385. The three dates total about 48.5 million, and 1951 is the clear low point.

There was no 1952 issue. Tony Clayton writes that because of the high demand for nickel during the Korean War no shillings dated 1952 were issued, though proofs of the English version are recorded. The King died on 6 February 1952, and Elizabeth II's shillings followed in 1953.

The reverse is the Royal Crest of England, as the 1948 proclamation specifies, with FID DEF, ONE SHILLING and the date. Clayton describes it as a lion standing left on a large crown, keeping the basic style of the George V shilling but with the date split either side. The design is George Kruger Gray's, although Wikipedia's article on him says the revised 1949 layout no longer carries his KG initials.

The obverse is Humphrey Paget's uncrowned portrait of the King facing left, with his initials HP below the neck. The Royal Mint Museum records that Paget alone was commissioned for the effigy and finished it in little more than a month. The legend GEORGIVS VI D G BR OMN REX stands for George VI, by the Grace of God, King of all the Britains. The edge is milled.

Varieties and errors

Apart from the 1952 proof recorded by Clayton, no recognised varieties or mint errors are documented for this coin.

Collecting notes

For a date set, 1951 is the key, with roughly half the mintage of 1949 and 1950. Clayton lists proofs dated 1950 and 1951 as well as the circulation strikes.

The legend is the quickest check: a coin reading FID DEF without IND IMP belongs to this type, while the 1947 and 1948 cupro-nickel English shilling with IND IMP has the longer legend. The Scottish shilling of the same years was issued alongside it. The Royal Mint Museum records that shillings stayed in use as 5p until 31 December 1990.