George III (1760-1820). Pattern silver Crown, 1817, "Incorrupta" type design by William Wyon, laureate and draped bust right, small W. WYON: below to left, date below all, legend surrounding with toothed border around rim both sides, GEORGIUS III D: G: BRITANNIARUM REX, Rev. struck en medaille, crowned quartered shield of arms, with an escutcheon of the Arms of Hanover, INCORRUPTA FIDES VERITASQUE, edge plain, weight 28.87g (Bull 2029 R4; ESC 229 R4; L&S 159 R4; KM.PnI77). Attractively toned, practically as struck, has been graded and slabbed by PCGS as PR65, the joint finest graded of only 4 pieces at PCGS; NGC have graded 6 examples of which only one is finer, purportedly only 25 pieces were struck, extremely rare. Estimate Value $120,000 - UP
Ex F. W. Willis Collection, Part II, Glendining, 7th October 1991, lot 465. Ex Dr David Rees Jones, Spink Coin Auction 117, 19th November 1996, lot 200.
PCGS certification 208053.65/83700152. The Latin legends translate as on obverse "George the Third by the grace of God, King of the Britons" and on the reverse "An untarnished faith." The influence of the Cromwellian engraver Thomas Simon can be clearly seen in this portrait by William Wyon where George III is styled in a similar fashion, as well as a similar reverse design. The Thomas Simon’s Oliver Cromwell portrait was still a major inspiration for engravers within the Royal Mint, even after it moved to Tower Hill and reopened with steam powered machinery from which this coin would have been struck. This influence is also seen later, from an extremely rare crown size piece after Oliver Cromwell and struck by William Wyon’s son Leonard Wyon in 1843 (Oliver Cromwell L&S 5-6).