Gold ryal of Edward IV

May 19, 2023May 19, 2023 Peter

The finder of this hammered gold coin wished to remain anonymous but I was asked to provide a valuation.

The coin is a gold ryal (ten shilling piece) of Edward IV. On the obverse the king stands in a ship and at the stern is a flag bearing a large letter E. On the side of the ship is a rose.

In the centre of the reverse is a radiant sun with a rose in the centre. In the arcs of the tressure are fleur de lis. This mint mark, on the reverse only, is a crown and the stops in the legend on both sides are small trefoils.

This ryal was struck at London and is an example of class VII. In the Standard Catalogue it is listed as number 1950.

Valuation

The coin looks as if it would grade good VF but is has a highly significant defect: the flan is badly bent. When it comes to value much depends on what the coin would look like after it is straightened out. Being made of very high quality gold a skilled goldsmith should be able to straighten it quite easily. The finder said there is no sign of a crack but the bend looks quite sharp and after any remedial work a crease might show up.

A similar coin, graded as VF but with a crude repair to an edge chip, recently sold for £3,200. Another specimen, said to be VF but with a crease mark across the coin, sold for £2,000. The latter is an example of how much impact a crease can have on a sale price.

Being optimistic, if this coin was straightened and left no sign of a crease then it could sell for at least £5,000.