Henry VII (1485-1509), Sovereign, type V, mm. lis on obv., pheon on rev., King seated on narrow throne holding orb and sceptre, portcullis below, rev. shield on Tudor rose, crosslet stops, four crosslets at end of rev. legend, 15.44g/10h (Potter & Winstanley type V; SCBI Schneider –; SCBI Ashmolean 83, same dies; N 1692/2; S 2176). Beautifully struck on a full round flan, extremely fine and extremely rare
£70,000-90,000

Provenance: Dr E.C. Carter Collection.

This piece is illustrated in The Art of Coins and their Photography, by Gerald Hoberman, p.196-7.

The sovereign was first introduced in 1489, in imitation of a prototype issued by Maximilian of Austria for his territories in the Low Countries and probably ultimately deriving from the large gold issues of the late medieval kings of Castille. Struck intermittently in small quantities over the next 15 years, the present type can be dated c. 1505. The series as a whole represents one of the artistic high points of English numismatics