The Isle of Man has its own circulating coinage, which is used in parallel with the British Pound Sterling; it also issues an extensive range of commemorative coins for collectors, as well as bullion coins in a variety of formats and designs for investors in precious metals.
One of the formats used is the half gram of gold (0.5 g) mini-coin, in which this coin is made.
The Noble was the name given to a coin introduced by Edward III in 1344 and was one of the first widely-used Gold coins struck in England. It was believed at the time that the coin was a lucky charm as a protection against thieves. In 1994 The Isle of Man Issued the first Noble since the reign of Edward IV with proceeding annual issues thereafter.
The modern Noble has been issued in a number of formats and by different mints since 1983. Its strong viking theme relates to the history of the island, having once been the Kingdom of Man and conquered by Norse leaders, with the King of Dublin and the Earls of Orkney ruling the isle. The design also relates to the old English Noble, which featured a ship too.
It is usually said that Nobles are legal tender but without a fixed face value, like the Krugerrand or Mexico’s Libertad which are legal tender to the value of their precious metal content. However, according to the various Currency Determinations by The Treasury of the Isle of Man authorising each issue, under section 6 of the Currency Act 1992, the "Noble" denomination is equal to 5 pounds in face value, with fractions or multiples divided or multiplied as required by the fraction or multiplier shown on the reverse of the coin - hence, the half gram is 5/64 of a pound, or 0.078125 p (rounded up to eight pence). |