At the Midlands coin fair last week (June 2016), I was lucky enough to see a 2005 Perth Prospector Collection which I thought was fantastic. It was different from the rest and very unusual.
The 2005 Perth Prospector Collection consists of a Gold 1oz Prospector Nugget Coin, a 1905 Perth Mint Sovereign and 1/4oz natural gold nuggets, beautifully packaged in a wooden box.
The set is part of a series of collections that celebrates the discovery of the Welcome Stranger nugget. Found in Victoria in 1869, it is the largest nugget ever found, weighing in at a whopping 2,284oz. At the time it was estimated to be worth £9,381. Today a nugget of that size would fetch about £2.7 million.
The 1oz coin depicts the Welcome Stranger nugget together with some early Australian prospectors and their prospecting techniques. There is some red colours added to the coin. The obverse shows Queen Elizabeth II and is legal tender with a denomination of Aus$100.
The 1905 Sovereign has a ‘P’ mintmark signifying the Perth Mint. The obverse is King Edward VII and the reverse is the classic George and the Dragon by Bernedetto Pistrucci.
Only 150 of these sets were authorised, so the set is probably quite difficult to find. I hadn’t thought about it before but I was told that it’s also difficult to buy gold nuggets.
My thanks to Max Hughes (MJ Hughes Coins) for allowing me to photograph the set. The set was sold at the show.
On eBay UK:
 | BULLION 1978 ELIZABETH II GOLD SOVEREIGN COIN IN NEAR MINT CONDITION. £ 490.00 |
 | Royal Mint UK GOLD PROOF FULL SOVEREIGN 2010 £ 549.00 |
 | 1912 George V Full Gold Sovereign, London Mint, Extremely Fine Condition £ 449.45 |
 | 1915 Half Sovereign King George V 3.99g 22ct Gold Coin In Flip £ 239.99 |
 | 1965 Full Sovereign 22ct Gold Coin Queen Elizabeth II £ 485.00 |
 | Gold Sovereign In Blister Full Gold Sovereign Queen Elizabeth Jubilee Rare 2022 £ 495.00 |
 | SEALED 2017 QUEEN ELIZABETH II GOLD SOVEREIGN COIN IN MINT CONDITION £ 495.00 |
 | 1997 HALF SOVEREIGN GOLD PROOF COIN WITH BOX and CERTIFICATE - RARE COIN £ 285.00 |
 | 1861 VICTORIA GOLD HALF SOVEREIGN COIN £ 349.00 |
 | 1876 Queen Victoria Young Head 22ct Gold Full Sovereign. £ 525.00 |
 | Full Sovereign 1901 London Mint Victoria Head 22ct Yellow Gold Bullion Coin £ 520.00 |
 | 1958 Gold Sovereign £ 529.00 |
 | 2020 Remembrance Day Gold Proof Sovereign of Unknown Warrior £ 550.00 |
 | 9ct Yellow Gold on Silver Sovereign Coin Ring - ALL SIZES AVAILABLE inc LARGE £ 29.95 |
 | 22ct gold Carded Full Sovereign Coin, limited edition dated Millennium 2000 £ 520.00 |
 | Royal Mint UK GOLD PROOF SOVEREIGN 1979 to 2024 - Choose your year £ 595.00 |
 | 1857 Full Gold Sovereign. Early Victoria. Shield Back. 22ct Gold. 7.98g £ 615.00 |
 | 1885 VICTORIA GOLD HALF SOVEREIGN Shieldback £ 289.00 |
 | 2022 Gold Sovereign Coin Full Sovereign £ 599.99 |
 | EX-MOUNT, 1820 BRITISH FULL SOVEREIGN COIN. 22ct GOLD. KING GEORGE III. £ 765.00 |