James I of England

James I (VI of Scotland) was of course, the monarch who united the Crowns of England and Scotland, and was subject to the notorious gunpowder plot of the 5th of November 1605, in which the gunpowder plotters led by Robert Catesby (including a certain Guido Fawkes) planned to blow up the King along with his Parliament. This coin, part of his second coinage, with a lis mintmark was struck between 1604 - 1605, at around the same time as the gunpowder plot, and may even have been struck that very day.

Uniting the Kingdoms

The reverse legend is a reference to Henry VII's role in uniting the Houses of York and Lancaster and putting an end to the Wars of the Roses, as well as James' role in Uniting the Kingdoms. James was eager to see a united Britain, as can be seen as his obverse legend were he is described as 'King of Great Britain'. However, England and Scotland remained seperate Kingdoms during James' lifetime, and his efforts to unite the Parliaments of England and Scotland as well as the Crowns remained a frustrated ambition of his that was not fulfilled until the reign of his great-grandaughter Anne in 1707. A very interesting coin considering the historical context.

Obverse

First bust of King James I of England, facing right, half length with decorated armour, mintmark lis.

IACOBVS.DG.MAG.BRIT,FRA.ET.HIB,REX

This translates to 'James by the Grace of God, King of Great Britain, France and Ireland'.

Reverse

Crown with 'I R' above square topped shield, mintmark lis.

HENRICVS.ROSAS.REGNA.IACOBVS

This translates to 'Henry united the Roses, James the Kingdoms'.

Specification

Metal	Gold
Gold Weight Troy Ounces	0.066
Fineness / Carat	0.917 / 22
Date	1604
Obverse Designer	Unknown
Reverse Designer	Unknown
Issuing Monarch	James I (1603-1625)
Mint / Brand	The Royal Mint
Country	United Kingdom

Delivery Information

We aim to dispatch orders within 48 hours of receiving cleared funds. Our standard delivery methods are as follows.

Orders over £60 - Fully Insured Delivery.

Within the UK and BFPO - Next day fully insured and tracked. Delivery starts from £6.

Orders under £60

Within the UK and BFPO - Royal Mail 2nd Class. Your order will normally arrive within 2-3 working days. Delivery starts from £3.50.

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For international delivery, please check with your local customs office for more information on custom duty and taxes.

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Postal Insurance

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Orders under £1500 there is no additional fee.
Orders over £1500 we charge a fee in order to cover the increasing costs of insurance. For every £1500 we apply a £1 fee.

If you require any assistance, please do not hesitate to call the showroom on +441253343081 and one of our team can discuss your purchase.

Terms of Sale - Key Points

You can find more information on payment and identification requirements.

Bullion coins are provided as is and on occasion may have some minor scratches or edge knocks. These are not regarded as faulty or damaged goods as their precious metal content and value as a bullion coin is not affected. Any coin sold for a value less than a 180% intrinsic is considered a bullion coin.

Gold investment products are VAT free. Silver investment products are inclusive of VAT at the current rate unless otherwise stated.

All investment products are based on the live precious metal price. Prices will be fixed once the item has been added to the basket and recalculates just before checking out.

If your product is not a graded coin and is considered a bullion item, it should be noted that these are bought and sold on low premiums over their precious metal content and not solely for aesthetic purposes; therefore, some products may have edge knocks and/or marks. These edge knocks and marks do not alter the specifications of the coins.

Please note that all investment products are exempt from the Consumer Contracts (Information, Cancellation and Additional Charges) Regulations 2013 and therefore customers do not have the right to cancel their order once the order has been accepted. If customers no longer wish to go ahead with their investment purchase, there is an option to sell the products back to Chard (1964) Ltd instead. View our current buy back prices.

View our full Terms & Conditions.

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