1 Sovereign - George IV (1821–1825)

One row for each year the 1 Sovereign - George IV 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; years with no sales yet fill in as sales are recorded. 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 1821 1 Sovereign - George IV

The 1821 1 Sovereign - George IV is a circulating 1 sovereign coin issued from 1821 to 1825 in the Sovereign series, struck in 91.67% gold. It weighs 7.99g and measures 22mm across. Reverse design: St George on horseback slaying the dragon right, date in exergue.

Mintage figures are recorded for 5 years between 1821 and 1825, 23,347,000 coins in all. 1823 is the scarcest date, with 617,000 struck. It is no longer legal tender (withdrawn 1891), so its value is to collectors only.

Common questions

History and design

The modern sovereign was introduced in 1817, and the first coins of George IV, who succeeded in 1820, are dated 1821. Wikipedia records that the new obverse was authorised by an Order in Council of 5 May 1821 and was based on the bust Pistrucci had prepared for the Coronation medal. These sovereigns were struck every year from 1821 to 1825.

Coin Hunter gives 9,405,114 for 1821, 5,356,787 for 1822, 616,770 for 1823, 3,767,904 for 1824 and 4,200,343 for 1825. The 1823 figure is the lowest of the five by a wide margin. The king grew unhappy with the portrait, and during 1825 the type gave way to William Wyon's bare head after Chantrey.

The obverse is Benedetto Pistrucci's laureate head of George IV facing left, with GEORGIUS IIII D: G: BRITANNIAR: REX F: D: and the initials B P below the truncation. The Royal Mint Museum calls the portrait skilful, if somewhat unflattering.

The reverse is Pistrucci's St George and the dragon, with the date in the exergue and B P again below. Wikipedia, citing Marsh, records that in 1821 the Garter surrounding the 1817 design was removed, the knight's broken spear became a sword, and the streamer behind his helmet was taken away. The coin is 22-carat gold with a milled edge.

Varieties and errors

Proofs dated 1821 exist, and the Royal Mint Museum holds one (RMM 1298). Clayton mentions an 1824 sovereign with edge lettering in the Royal Mint Museum. The Museum catalogues that piece (RMM 1300) as a pattern with the edge ANNO REGNI QUINTO, but its record describes an uncrowned portrait with the legends GEORGIUS IV DEI GRATIA and BRITANNIARUM REX FID: DEF:, the wording of the later bare head coins, so it is better seen as a forerunner of that type than a variety of this one.

Collecting notes

Clayton notes that George IV's sovereigns come in two designs, this laureate head with St George from 1821 to 1825 and the bare head with a shield from 1825 to 1830, both with milled edges. An 1825 sovereign needs to be checked for which type it is, since both carry that date; Coin Hunter's 4,200,343 for 1825 refers to the laureate head.

The low-mintage 1823 is the date to look for. Wear shows first on St George's helmet and the horse's head, and on the king's laurel and hair. Clayton notes that the sovereign has been extensively forged, so weight and detail should be checked. The bare head type that followed is the 1825 to 1830 shield sovereign.