Henry VIII groat

Michael Young said he unearthed this coin a couple of years since. Finds don’t have to be recent to be featured on the website, so if you have anything you want to know more about that you dug up in the past then do send it in.

Michael’s find is a groat of Henry VIII, which was struck during the second coinage (1526-44). It’s a product of the mint in the Tower of London and has mint mark arrow on both sides.

Most of the portraits of Henry VIII show him as a rather fat and bearded man; these were painted when he had put on a good deal of weight after a quite serious accident during a jousting tournament in 1536. The groat pictured here shows him as a beardless younger man. The portrait isn’t meant to flatter him, for this is how he looked before he put on weight.

Valuation

The reverse of the coin is slightly weak in places but is otherwise near VF. The obverse has been struck slightly off centre bit it is VF with a really good portrait. In its present condition I’d set the minimum price at £250.

Coin Valuation Service

Have your coin or artefact valued using my free online coin valuation service