½ Sovereign - George IV 2nd reverse (1823–1825)

One row for each year the ½ Sovereign - George IV 2nd reverse 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 1823 Half Sovereign - George IV 2nd reverse

The 1823 Half Sovereign - George IV 2nd reverse is a circulating ½ sovereign coin issued from 1823 to 1825 in the Half Sovereign series, struck in 91.67% gold. It weighs 3.99g and measures 19mm across. Reverse design: © Heritage Auctions.

Mintage figures are recorded for 3 years between 1823 and 1825, 1,576,800 coins in all. 1823 is the scarcest date, with 224,200 struck. It is no longer legal tender (withdrawn 1891), so its value is to collectors only.

Common questions

History and design

The half sovereign's first George IV reverse, used only in 1821, was withdrawn because a gilded sixpence could be passed off as one. Wikipedia, citing Marsh, records that when the half sovereign was next struck, in 1823, it carried a plainer shield designed by Jean Baptiste Merlen with Pistrucci's portrait unchanged, and that this version was also struck in 1824 and 1825.

Coin Hunter gives 224,280 for 1823, 591,538 for 1824 and 761,150 for 1825. Output rose each year as gold coin returned to everyday use: Wikipedia records that the Bank of England began encouraging the circulation of sovereigns in 1820, after a plan to keep gold out of circulation was abandoned.

The obverse keeps Benedetto Pistrucci's laureate head of George IV facing left, with GEORGIUS IIII D: G: BRITANNIAR: REX F: D: around it, as on the Royal Mint Museum's 1823 proof. The king disliked the portrait, and Pistrucci's refusal to copy a bust by Francis Chantrey ended his work on the coinage.

Merlen's reverse shows the crowned shield of the royal arms without the elaborate garnishing of 1821, with ANNO and the date. The shield carries the crowned arms of Hanover, since the British king also ruled Hanover until 1837. The coin is 22-carat gold with a milled edge.

Varieties and errors

The Royal Mint Museum holds an 1823 proof (RMM 1308), weighing 4.05 g with a milled edge. No mint errors are documented.

Collecting notes

Tony Clayton notes that George IV half sovereigns use two obverses and three reverses with no overlap within a single date, so the date alone identifies the type. This shield is the middle one: the 1821 ornate shield came before it and the bare head type of 1826 to 1828 after it.

The 1823 has the lowest mintage of the three dates. Check the laureate wreath and hair for wear and the shield's crown and quarters for knocks, and confirm weight and colour on any example, since gilded sixpences were passed as half sovereigns in this period. Like all pre-Victorian gold, these coins were demonetised from 28 February 1891.