5 GUINEAS: KING OF COINS
HISTORY
Large grand gold coins of centuries gone by are the ultimate treasures. The most important of all coins in the world are the Great Britain 5 Guineas (later called 5 Pounds). The 5 Guineas was minted starting in 1668 and is still being made today, however the denomination is now called 5 Pounds. The current year can be bought on the Royal Mint's website. It is the King of coins because it is the world's largest gold coin ever made for commerce and it is one of the world's greatest creations of Golden Art. They weigh an impressive 1.35 ounce. The early 5 Guineas from the 1600's and 1700's are extremely rare in any condition, but 99.99% of them are well circulated. This is due to the obvious. The 5 Guineas represented a fortune (between 3 and 12 months wages for an average person) and few that came into contact with one could afford to keep it and not spend it. The early coins were made for commerce. Today they are still being made, but only for sale as collectors items.
For the past decade, the priority mission of our team of expert numismatists has been to hunt for superb condition 5 Guineas. We have traveled the globe for this entire decade hunting. We have gone to Australia, China, Japan, Africa, Europe, and the US hunting. After all of these years of hunting, we have found very few. The reason for this is as follows;
1. It is the world's largest coin and highly coveted.
2. It is extremely rare.
3. It is extraordinarily under valued and sellers are not motivated to part with them.
WHY THE 5 GUINEAS AND POUNDS WAS MADE
The 5 Guineas was made for commerce, but the large size was virtually impossible for the average person to afford. They were made so large as a political statement that Great Britain was the greatest empire on earth.
IMPORTANCE AND POPULARITY
Collectors want important coin series. What makes a series important?
1. Important Country. Coins from third world countries are no sought after nearly as much as coins from important countries. Great Britain and its colonies eventually evolved into the British Empire, the world's largest in history. The famous saying, the sun never set on the British Empire, helps define the scale of global demand from collectors and investors.
2. Significant Purpose in Commerce. As the world's largest coin made for commerce, the 5 Guineas and Pounds has great respect for its grandeur. After over 350 years it is still today the flagship denomination of Great Britain.
3. Longevity. The 5 GUINEAS AND POUNDS is the world's longest running large gold coinage series.
4. Art. These great coins are the ultimate forms of art made in gold.
HISTORICAL PRICE DATA
The 5 Guineas has never dropped in value in all of recorded history. In recent decades, they have steadily and reliably risen in value.
UNLIMITED FUTURE APPRECIATION POTENTIAL
The 5 Guineas is unique among all coins because it has no comparable in the world. As a result, there is no price ceiling that will ever be reached. It can rise literally forever as it can never be called over valued. Unlike a house in a neighborhood of $500,000 houses that must stay reasonable close in value to its local comparables, the 5 Guineas could rise 10 times above its present value and still not be over valued.
5 GUINEAS AND 5 POUNDS. THE BOOK
Historic New Book by GREG HOLLOWAY
Over 10 years in the making, I have written the encyclopedia of the most important large gold coins in the world, the FIVE GUINEAS and FIVE POUNDS of the British series.
Here is my introduction to the book:
INTRODUCTION
In 1990 with rare coin values in their infancy, I smashed the record books with the first sale in world history of any rare coin to bring over $1 million. Despite the fact that the world was in recession at the time, this transaction proved that rare coins have great appeal beyond economic conditions.
Since this record breaking sale, numerous US coins have sold for over $1 million making this lofty threshold a mere historical footnote. In fact the record now stands at $19 million for a single rare coin, a US gold double eagle.
Against this back drop of skyrocketing US rare coin values, the values of the great rare coins of England have risen at a much slower rate. This is now changing. Collectors and investors have been drawn to the 5 Guineas and 5 Pounds series creating intense competition for the best.
In 2019, once again, I set the record for the first English coin in history to sell for over $1 million at auction. This sale was for the finest known and most famous 5 Guineas, the 1703 Vigo, created under Sir Isaac Newton as master of the mint.
Then again in 2020, in the midst of the great pandemic, I broke the over $1 million record for an English coin twice. Slightly beating the 2019 record of the Vigo 5 Guineas, were the twin sales of one of the finest known 1839 Una and Lion 5 Pounds and the finest known 1831 5 pounds. Like in 1990, these two sales in 2020 prove that rare coins have great appeal beyond economic conditions.
There has now been an even newer entry into the record book with the 2021 sale of the 1937 Edward VIII 5 Pounds now breaking the $2 million barrier. It is no coincidence that all four of these over $1 million sales are for the King of Coins. Therefore, the King of Coins is also the King of records.
Like in 1990, we will look back on this moment wistfully at the present opportunity to acquire the King of Coins before they too, break the $19 million record.
