Sovereign 1917, Coin from United Kingdom - detailed information

A circular gold coin (22 mm diameter with milled edge) featuring a bare head of George V facing left; below, the artist's initials B.M.; around, GEORGIVS V D.G. BRITT: OMN:REX F.D. IND:IMP:.

On the reverse St. George on horseback holding short sword and wearing a helmet, cape and boots, the horse rearing over dragon whose side is pierced by a broken lance, the haft of the lance is on the ground behind the horse; the date, 1917 and artist's initials B.P. in exergue; the mint mark (if any; coins minted at the Royal Mint in London do not have a mint mark) in ground line above middle of date.

Minted in numbers that just eclipsed the million mark, the 1917 Royal Mint London sovereign was never truly released, the Bank of England holding it in reserve during World War I. Later, almost the entirety of the date was exported to war allies as repayment for debts accrued. As history allows us to deduct, most of these wound up going to the U.S. and their likely resting place at Fort Knox. When the Gold Reserve Act was passed in January of 1934, significant amounts of gold specie was melted and re-barred, including what turned out to be most of the mintage of the 1917 sovereigns. Today, while the exact number of survivors is unknown, infrequent appearances at auction allows this date to maintain its legendary status.