Authenticate your Gold Sovereign

How to spot a fake Gold Sovereign

The British gold Sovereign has been struck to the same 22-carat standard since 1817, with Pistrucci's St George and the dragon on most reverses. Its long history, worldwide recognition and the premiums on older and scarcer dates make it one of the most copied gold coins. In the UK, Sovereigns are also legal tender and exempt from Capital Gains Tax, which adds to demand.

What fakes exist

Gold-plated base metal. Brass or copper with a thin gold layer. Usually the wrong weight, and wear can expose the base metal on high points.

Cast copies. Poured into a mould taken from a genuine coin. Look for an "orange peel" surface, soft details and poor reeding.

Struck counterfeits. Made on a press with copied dies, sometimes in low-grade gold. Details can be sharp, so these are among the hardest to catch by eye; colour, weight and the ping test help.

Tungsten-core fakes. Tungsten is almost as dense as gold, so a tungsten centre with a gold covering can come close to the correct weight. These are made to pass a scale.

The checks, in order

1. Weight

A full Sovereign weighs 7.988 g. Use a scale that reads to 0.01 g.

• A modern, uncirculated coin should read 7.98 or 7.99 g. Older circulated coins can be a little lighter from wear.
• A coin well under that without heavy wear, or noticeably over it, should be tested further.
• A correct weight does not prove the coin is genuine; tungsten-core and gold-alloy fakes can match it.

2. Diameter and thickness

Measure with digital calipers and compare with the facts box on this page. Counterfeiters who get the weight right with a lighter metal usually have to make the coin thicker or wider. A coin that fits loosely in, or won't fit in, a capsule made for Sovereigns is worth a closer look.

3. Colour

Sovereigns are 22-carat gold alloyed with copper, so they have a warmer, slightly reddish tone compared with 24-carat coins. A coin that looks too yellow, too brassy, or uneven in colour across its surface deserves suspicion. Colour is easiest to judge beside a Sovereign you know is genuine, in natural light.

4. Design details

Use a 10x loupe.

Obverse (the monarch):

• Hair, crown or tiara and facial features should be sharp, not mushy.
• The legend should be crisp with even spacing.
• The portrait must match the date (see below).

Reverse (St George and the dragon):

• The dragon's scales, the horse's mane and St George's cloak should show fine detail.
• The ground line should be clean, with Pistrucci's "B.P." initials present on the dates that carry them.

Surface: an orange-peel or grainy texture, pits or bubbles point to a cast copy. Struck fakes can look very sharp, so good detail alone is not proof.

5. Edge

The edge is milled (reeded). Reeds should be evenly spaced and sharp all the way round. Shallow or uneven reeding, file marks, or a seam line around the edge are common signs of a fake.

6. Magnet

Gold is not magnetic. Hold a strong neodymium magnet near the coin. Any attraction means steel or iron inside, and the coin is fake. Passing only rules out ferrous metal; brass, copper and tungsten are not magnetic either.

7. Ping test

A genuine Sovereign gives a clear ring when balanced on a fingertip and tapped gently with another coin. A coin with a different metal inside, such as a tungsten or base-metal core, usually resonates differently. The ping test at the top of this page listens for the coin's resonant frequencies and compares them with a genuine Sovereign.

Treat it as one strong check among several. Small coins like the Sovereign are more sensitive to how they are held, and background noise, damage or a capsule can throw the result off. It can also miss some fakes. If the result disagrees with your other checks, take the coin out of its holder and repeat in a quiet room.

8. Further testing

• Specific gravity: weighing the coin in air and in water gives its density, which for 22-carat gold is about 17.8. Plated base metal reads far lower.
• Electromagnetic testers (such as the Sigma Metalytics) check conductivity below the surface and help with tungsten-core and plated fakes.
• XRF at a dealer confirms the surface alloy, but cannot see a core underneath.

Date and variety tells

Not every date, portrait and mint mark combination exists, and counterfeiters sometimes make impossible ones.

• Portrait and date must agree. For example, Edward VII Sovereigns are dated 1902 to 1910; an Edward VII portrait with a later date is wrong.
• Branch mint marks (such as S for Sydney, M for Melbourne, P for Perth) only appear in the years those mints struck Sovereigns. The Sydney Mint, for example, closed in 1926.
• Edward VIII (1937): Edward VIII abdicated before Sovereigns bearing his portrait were issued. Only a tiny number of pattern pieces exist, and they almost never come to market. Any "Edward VIII Sovereign" offered at ordinary prices is a fantasy piece or reproduction.
• Scarce and high-premium dates attract the most careful forgeries. Check the date and mint mark against a reference before paying a premium, and consider a graded coin.
• Jewellery pieces. Sovereigns set in or soldered to jewellery, or copies sold as pendants, may be damaged or not coins at all. Weigh and test them as you would any other.

Graded coins and dealers

For valuable dates, a coin graded by PCGS or NGC has been examined by experts. Fake slabs exist, so look up the certificate number on the grader's website (PCGS, NGC) and make sure it matches. For bullion Sovereigns, buying from an established dealer with a returns policy, and testing on arrival, removes most of the risk.

If you suspect a fake

1. Stop. Don't buy it, and if you already own it, don't sell or trade it on.
2. Weigh and measure again, and repeat the ping test in a quiet room.
3. Compare with a Sovereign you know is genuine.
4. Take it to a reputable dealer for electromagnetic or XRF testing, or send it for professional authentication.
5. If you bought it, contact the seller with your evidence and ask for a refund.

Related guides

• 1 oz Gold Krugerrand
• 1 oz Gold Britannia (2013 to 2025)