The First Gold Sovereign
The gold sovereign came into existence in 1489 under King Henry VII. The pound sterling had been a unit of account for centuries, as had the mark. Then, for the first time a coin denomination was issued with a value of one pound sterling.
The obverse design deplicts the King seated facing on a throne. It was from this image of the monarch that the gold coin got its name “the sovereign”. The reverse was a shield on a large double Tudor rose. Example of one of those early Gold Sovereign coins 
Posted: August 28th, 2006 under Gold Coins.
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