NGC-certified English Gold Penny Realizes a Lofty $720,000 at Auction

SARASOTA, Fla. (January 27, 2021)!—! An extremely rare English gold penny struck more than 750 years ago and now certified by Numismatic Guaranty Corporation® (NGC®) realized an impressive $720,000 at a Heritage Auction sale of world and ancient coins that was held January 21-22, 2021. Graded NGC MS 63, the gold penny of King Henry III!is just one of seven known examples, including four in museums. Its hammer price far exceeded the pre-auction estimate of $250,000 to $500,000.

The gold penny shows the king seated in robes, wearing a crown and holding an orb and scepter. This motif marks the first time an enthroned ruler was shown on a gold coin of medieval Western Europe.

For a variety of reasons, the gold pennies were not embraced in English commerce and the ambitious experiment in coinage failed. Nevertheless, they represent a turning point in numismatics and are highly valued today.