Great Britain Sixpence and Shilling (George III) 1787

These are one-year type coins minted in silver during the reign of King George III.

SIXPENCE: 3 grams, 21 mm diameter, 0.09 troy ounces silver
SHILLING: 6 grams, 27 mm diameter, 0.18 troy ounces silver

The design is quite pleasing, with a nice renaissance-style bust of the king on the obverse ('heads' side), and four shields in cruciform on the reverse, each shield containing elements of the British royal arms.

The catalogs report the following values for these coins:

SIXPENCE WITH HEARTS:
worn: $10 US dollars approximate catalog value
average circulated: $20
well preserved: $50
fully uncirculated: $110

SHILLING WITH HEARTS:
worn: $20 US dollars approximate catalog value
average circulated: $60
well preserved: $150
fully uncirculated: $450

CoinQuest thanks Baldwin's in London for letting us use the image above. It is a beautiful specimen that sold for 420 GBP (about $630 US dollars) at auction back in 2010. That selling price demonstrates how deceptive catalog values can be, and how really nice looking coins will sell for most any amount, regardless of catalog value. It pays to have a good auctioneer when you are selling your coins! There was, no doubt, a bidding war during the auction of this specimen. Two collectors were determined to get it! Most auctions yield prices much closer to catalog value.

Now, there is a twist with these coins. Some were minted with several small hearts in the shield on the left side on the reverse. In our secondary image, you can see a comparison of a coin with hearts in the shield, and a coin without them.

On worn coins, it might be difficult to tell. A magnifying glass will work wonders.

SIXPENCE WITHOUT HEARTS:
worn: $25
average circulated: $50
well preserved: $125
fully uncirculated: $220

SHILLING WITHOUT HEARTS:
worn: $25
average circulated: $50
well preserved: $100
fully uncirculated: $160

John's coin, which he reports as numismatic grade MS63, would catalog slightly above a fully uncirculated coin cited above.

Remember that these are all catalog values. Refer to our 'Important Terminology' page on the top left in order to properly interpret these values.
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