George III Gold Third-Guinea 1802

Description

Denomination: Gold third-guinea

Period: Hanoverian

Date: 1802

Origin: Royal Mint. London

Condition: Fine

Obverse: Laureate head (first bust). right. legend around

Reverse: Central crown with date below. legend around

Size and Weight: 17mm. 2.8g

References: Spink 3739

Features and Provenance: This coin was only produced during this reign from 1797 to 1813 so is relatively rare. At the time they were known as seven shilling pieces but this denomination was removed towards the end of his reign. It was replaced by the sovereign in 1817.

George became king in 1760 at the age of 22. A pious man. he loathed corruption and sought. maybe rather naively. to rid the court and government of ‘bad men’. He later admitted defeat and concluded ‘We must call in bad men to govern bad men!’. His lapses into insanity in later life have now been attributed to porphyria. an imbalance in the body that poisons the nervous system. however. the latest diagnosis is that he suffered from bi-polar disorder. His last ten years were particularly sad. spending them isolated in a set of rooms in Kew Palace. He died at the age of 82. in 1820. having been a much loved monarch by the people. if not his governments.

Condition Summary. This varies with the age of coin and there are grades between

Uncirculated (U). As struck with no traces of wear

Extremely Fine (EF). Very slight traces of wear. all parts of legend etc present. visible and clear

Very Fine (VF). Some signs of wear on the higher parts of the relief. all parts of legend etc present. but maybe worn

Fine (F). Wear on the coin and parts of legend etc may be missing or not visible