British, Irish and Scottish Coins

Elizabeth I (1558-1603), Sixth issue, Ryal, mm. A on rev. only, crowned figure of Queen holding orb and sceptre standing facing in ship, rose on ship’s side, e on flag at stern, rev. ornate cross with rose over sun in centre, crowned lions in angles, 7.65g/6h (Brown/Comber B1; N 2004; S 2530). Well-struck on a full flan, extremely fine and extremely rare £30,000-40,000

Provenance: Viscount Astor Collection; Spink Auction 9, 4 June 1980, lot 369.

This piece is illustrated in The Art of Coins and their Photography, by Gerald Hoberman, p.207.

The striking of fine sovereigns (double nobles) and ryals (nobles) was authorised in April 1584 to help finance the projected expedition of the Earl of Leicester to the Netherlands. English nobles and their imitations had long been accepted in the Low Countries and the rather anachronistic, medieval appearance of the ryal was designed to fit this circulating medium. Some 3,000 pieces were struck between May 1584 and the end of January 1587, a tiny figure when compared with approximately 100,000 angels produced by the Mint during the same period

This is a continental imitation (Brown/Comber B1; SCBI Schneider 890, same rev. die; Thompson, NC 1941, no.11, O6/R6, possibly struck in Amsterdam)