How to collect Half-Sovereigns
The Gold Half-Sovereign is a gold coin, being as it suggests, half the value and half of the gold weight of a gold sovereign. Today, the half-sovereign is a commemorative coin, not issued every year and often only collected as part of a set. Gold Half-Sovereigns popularity is not as great as full sovereigns but you should find many for sale and they are a cheaper way to get into gold bullion. You can see Half-Sovereigns on eBay UK (affiliate link)
The Half-Sovereign wa introduced a long time ago, in 1544 during the reign of Henry VII. However it was discontinued in 1604 (along with full sovereigns) and no more were minted until 1817. Production ended again in 1926 (1933 in Australia) and except for a few special issues during the Coronation years, it was 1980 when we saw half-sovereigns again.
As the value is half of one sovereign, that gives the half-sovereign a face value of half a pound or ten shillings - 50p in post-decimal money, although you're going to have to pay somewhat over the gold price if you want to buy one.
The Obverse is usually the Monarch's head and on modern half-sovereigns the Reverse is most often St George and the Dragon (usually the Benedetto Pistrucci version), although other backs have been used.
As a historical note: to maintain the Gold Standard, in 1816 the value of silver was set at 66 shillings for one troy pound and silver coins were only legal for denominations up to £2.
The diameter of a half-sovereign is 19.3mm and is only slightly smaller than a full sovereign (22.05mm) so first appearance may confuse inexperienced buyers. You can see in the image on the right, the half-sovereign on the right hand side is quite similar to the full sovereign on the left.
While you can buy half-sovereigns, many collectors only own them as part of a set.
Which Half-Sovereigns to look for?
The lowest mintage Half-Sovereigns are:(These are coins in our database, list may not be exhustive)
- 2024 Gold Half-Sovereign Proof - Charles III (mintage: 1,250)
- 2019 Half-Sovereign - Proof (mintage: 2,000)
- 2018 Half-Sovereign Proof - 65th Anniversary Mint Mark (mintage: 2,500)
- 2023 Gold Half-Sovereign Coronation of King Charles III (mintage: 2,500)
- 2022 Gold Half-Sovereign - Queen Elizabeth II Memorial Proof - Charles III (mintage: 3,000)
- 2016 Half-Sovereign Proof - Butler Effigy - Elizabeth II (mintage: 3,675)
- 2020 Half-Sovereign - Proof (mintage: 3,910)
- 2022 Half-Sovereign Proof (mintage: 4,310)
- 1993 Half-Sovereign - Proof (mintage: 4,651)
- 1995 Half-Sovereign - Proof (mintage: 5,000)
Coins in the Half-Sovereigns Category
 | Henry VIII (1509-1547) | |
 | Edward VI (1547-1553) | |
 | George III (1760-1820) | |
 | George IV (1820-1830) | |
 | William IV (1830-1837) | |
 | Victoria (1837-1901) | |
 | Edward VII (1901-1910) | |
 | George V (1910-1936) | |
 | George VI (1936-1952) | |
 | Elizabeth II (1952-2022) | |
 | Charles III (2022-Present) |
More Information about Half-Sovereign coins for Collectors
The Gold Half-Sovereign is a gold coin, being as it's name suggests, half the value and half of the gold weight of a gold sovereign. Today, the half-sovereign is a commemorative coin, not issued every year and often only collected as part of a set.The Half-Sovereign wa introduced a long time ago, in 1544 during the reign of Henry VII. However it was discontinued in 1604 (along with full sovereigns) and no more were minted until 1817. Production ended again in 1926 (1933 in Australia) and except for a few special issues during the Coronation years, it was 1980 when we saw half-sovereigns again.
As the value is half of one sovereign, that gives the half-sovereign a face value of half a pound or ten shillings - 50p in post-decimal money, although you're going to have to pay somewhat over the gold price if you want to buy one.
The Obverse is usually the Monarch's head and on modern half-sovereigns the Reverse is most often St George and the Dragon (usually the Benedetto Pistrucci version), although other backs have been used.
Specifications for Gold Half-Sovereigns
- Weight: 3.99 g
- Diameter: 19.30 mm
- Thickness: 0.99 mm
- Purity: 22 carat = 91.67% (11/12ths gold, 1/12th copper. Adding copper makes the coin more scratch and dent resistant)
- Gold Content: 3.6575 g = 0.1176 troy ounce
- Face value: £0.50 = 10 shillings (decimal: 50 pence)
- These specifications apply to half-sovereigns from 1817.
History of the Gold Half-Sovereign coin
Up until 1604 there was a coin called the English gold sovereign and in 1816 when there was the "Great Recoinage" the name was revived. At that time standard gold (22 carat) was valued at £46 14s 6d per troy pound; this meant a £1 coin needed to weigh 123.2744783 grains or 7.988030269 g. The weight is still the same today.As a historical note: to maintain the Gold Standard, in 1816 the value of silver was set at 66 shillings for one troy pound and silver coins were only legal for denominations up to £2.
The diameter of a half-sovereign is 19.3mm and is only slightly smaller than a full sovereign (22.05mm) so first appearance may confuse inexperienced buyers. You can see in the image on the right, the half-sovereign on the right hand side is quite similar to the full sovereign on the left.While you can buy half-sovereigns, many collectors only own them as part of a set.