NGC-certified 'Una and the Lion' Is in the Spotlight at Spink Sale

Rare English gold coins certified by Numismatic Guaranty Corporation® (NGC®) — including a coveted "Una and the Lion" — are expected to draw intense interest from bidders as part of a pair of Spink sales. Bidding is already underway for the NYINC Numismatic Collector's Series Sale and the Sir Rodney Sweetnam KCVO CBE Collection of English Gold Coins and Other Properties, which are both being held on January 17, 2021.

The top lot in the sales is a Great Britain 1839 Victoria Proof Set, with an estimate of $250,000 to $350,000 USD. Its centerpiece is an Una and the Lion Five Sovereign graded NGC PF 62+ Ultra Cameo, an example of a coin that has been showing particularly strong results at auctions around the world.

Great Britain 1839 "Una and the Lion" Five Sovereign graded NGC PF 62+ Ultra Cameo Click images to enlarge

Widely considered to be the most beautiful of all British coinage, they were struck to celebrate Queen Victoria, who had just begun her 63-year rule. The obverse shows a bust of Victoria while the reverse shows the young queen as Lady Una, a character from Edmund Spenser’s 1590 poem "The Faerie Queene." In the scene, she is seen directing a lion, an animal that symbolizes England.

The Una and the Lion is being offered as part of a 15-coin Proof set, which also includes denominations from a Farthing through a Sovereign, graded from NGC PF 62 to NGC PF 64★ Cameo.

Meanwhile, a coin forged during the chaos of the English Civil War is also expected to realize six figures in the same sale. The England 1643 Triple Unite graded NGC MS 61 and pedigreed to Kirk, Montagu and Brooker has an estimate of $150,000 to $200,000 USD.

England 1643 Triple Unite graded NGC MS 61 Click images to enlarge

It shows King Charles I and was struck at Oxford, which he used as a base during the war. The reverse promotes three principles: The Protestant religion, the laws of England and the power of Parliament. Few of these large coins still exist today, and they are a highlight of any auction that offers them.

Other NGC-certified highlights include:

• an England 1688 5 Guineas graded NGC MS 62 and pedigreed to the Sir Rodney Sweetnam Collection, with an estimate of £40,000 to £50,000 (about $54,000 to $68,000 USD)
• an England 1701 Plain Sceptres 5 Guineas graded NGC MS 62+ and pedigreed to the Sir Rodney Sweetnam Collection, with an estimate of £30,000 to £40,000 (about $41,000 to $54,000 USD)
• a Great Britain 1798 Shilling graded NGC AU 58 and pedigreed to Slaney, with an estimate of £25,000 to £30,000 (about $34,000 to $41,000 USD)
• an England 1656 Broad graded NGC MS 63★ and pedigreed to the Sir Rodney Sweetnam Collection, with an estimate of £20,000 to £30,000 (about $27,000 to $41,000 USD)
• a Great Britain 1746 Lima 5 Guineas graded NGC AU 58 and pedigreed to the Sir Rodney Sweetnam Collection, with an estimate of £20,000 to £30,000 (about $27,000 to $41,000 USD)
• an England 1692 Elephant and Castle 5 Guineas graded NGC AU 58 and pedigreed to the Sir Rodney Sweetnam Collection, with an estimate of £15,000 to £20,000 (about $20,000 to $27,000 USD)
• a Great Britain 1729 E.I.C. 5 Guineas graded NGC AU 58 and pedigreed to the Sir Rodney Sweetnam Collection, with an estimate of £15,000 to £20,000 (about $20,000 to $27,000 USD)
• a Great Britain 1831 "W.WYON" Crown graded NGC PF 64+ Cameo and pedigreed to the Roy Francis Collection, with an estimate of $15,000 to $25,000 USD
• an England 1673 5 Guineas graded NGC AU 53, with an estimate of $15,000 to $20,000 USD
• a Great Britain 1831 2 Sovereign graded NGC PF 61 Ultra Cameo and pedigreed to the Hayleigh Collection, with an estimate of $15,000 to $20,000 USD
• an England 1685 Plume on Reverse Shilling graded NGC AU 55 and pedigreed to the Roy Francis Collection, with an estimate of about $10,000 to $20,000 USD

All estimates are provided by the auction house.