1885-M Half Sovereign

The 1885 Melbourne is the rarest date in the Young Head series, coming from a tiny mintage of 11,003, Marsh rates this coin as R5 (9 to 14 examples known), though I'd estimate that closer to 200 examples are in existence. The type turns up once or twice per year at auction though in the lower grades, always demands a premium over catalogue values. The date generally turns up in the Fine to VF range and while is extremely scarce beyond this, I'm inclined to believe that the 1886-M, the 1887-M and certainly the 1881-M are much scarcer in the upper grades.

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