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Half sovereigns were struck at the Sydney, Melbourne and Perth mints from 1911 to 1920. Despite the relatively high proportion
of surviving coins in AU or better, in recent times they have become difficult to acquire in true
The
The date is positioned below and the designer's initials, B.P., appear on the far right below the ground.
Although over one million half sovereigns were struck at Australian mints during the reign of George V, few were used
in circulation due to the introduction of
PCGS have certified fourteen coins from the George V series into MS66 and one MS66 (PCGS Population Report, 2016) which command very strong premiums over pieces in lower grades, often up to double MS65 values. Many coins, especially those from the Perth and Melbourne mints, are often very softly struck and are difficult to obtain above MS64.
The obverse of the coin is very hard-wearing, with the highest point being the end of George V's moustache which typically wears off below the AU grading. The reverse wears much more easily, but due to the frequency of weakly struck examples and the superior obverse, AU pieces are often mistaken as being mint state.
A typical mint state half sovereign of George V makes MS62 to MS64 for the later dates, though may drop down to MS63 occasionally. Coins graded below this have almost always been circulated but due to their hard-wearing nature still make the mint state grades. Most dates are quite common below mint state but still in demand due to the scarcity of mint state examples and because they are generally quite pleasing to the eye, even in AU.
While one would expect the 1911 Perth to have been circulated to a similar extent to the 1911 Sydney, the average grade would seem to indicate that it saw far less circulation. As a result, the type is slightly more common in the upper grades with the typical circulated examples being around EF. The date has been quite overrated, relative to the rest of the series since the 1999 centenary of the Perth Mint after many were recalled for commemorative sets and their scarcity was revealed. There are approximately 1500 examples surviving, but most would grade much higher than the average Sydney Mint issue, typically ranging from EF to Uncirculated.
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