{"id":20305,"date":"2026-10-05T05:46:47","date_gmt":"2026-10-05T04:46:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/metalsradar.com\/glossary\/numismatic-coins\/"},"modified":"2026-10-05T07:48:51","modified_gmt":"2026-10-05T06:48:51","slug":"numismatic-coins","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/metalsradar.com\/gb\/glossary\/numismatic-coins\/","title":{"rendered":"Numismatic Coins"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"mrf-gl\"><p class=\"gl-def\">A numismatic coin is a coin valued mainly for its rarity, age, condition or design rather than its metal content. Proof coins, limited mintages and historic dates are sold at prices well above the metal value.<\/p><aside class=\"panel gl-live\"><p class=\"gl-live-h\">\ud83c\uddec\ud83c\udde7 Today in the UK<\/p><div class=\"gl-row\"><span>Gold, 1 troy ounce (spot)<\/span><b>\u00a33,150<\/b><\/div><div class=\"gl-row\"><span>Cheapest 1 oz gold coin: <a href=\"https:\/\/metalsradar.com\/gb\/product\/1-oz-krugerrand-gold-coin\/\">1 oz Krugerrand Gold Coin<\/a><\/span><b>\u00a33,173.61<\/b> <small>+0.8% premium<\/small><\/div><p class=\"gl-src\">Data as of 05.10.2026, updated daily.<\/p><a class=\"btn primary\" href=\"https:\/\/metalsradar.com\/gb\/cheapest-gold-coins\/\">Compare gold coin prices \u203a<\/a><\/aside><div class=\"gl-body\"><h2>Numismatic vs bullion coins<\/h2><p>The same design can be sold as either. The Royal Mint strikes the Sovereign and the Britannia as <a href=\"bullion}}\">bullion<\/a> for investors and as proof and limited editions for collectors. The gold content is the same; the price is not.<\/p><table><thead><tr><th><\/th><th>Bullion coin<\/th><th>Numismatic coin<\/th><\/tr><\/thead><tbody><tr><td>Price basis<\/td><td>Metal value plus a small premium<\/td><td>Rarity, condition, demand from collectors<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Finish<\/td><td>Standard strike<\/td><td>Proof, mirror field, frosted design<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Packaging<\/td><td>Tube or capsule<\/td><td>Presentation box and certificate<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Buyback by bullion dealers<\/td><td>Close to metal value<\/td><td>Often only metal value<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><h2>Proof coins and graded coins<\/h2><p>A proof coin is struck several times with polished dies, giving a mirror background and frosted design. Proofs come in sealed cases with a numbered certificate and are sold in limited numbers. Graded coins are sealed in slabs by grading services with a condition score. Both are collector products, and their value depends on someone wanting that exact coin later.<\/p><h3>Example: two Sovereigns with the same gold<\/h3><p>A bullion Sovereign and a proof Sovereign of the same year both hold 7.32 g of fine gold, 0.2354 &lt;a href=&quot;<a href=\"troy-ounce}}\">troy ounce<\/a>\"&gt;troy ounces<\/a>. If a proof sells for double the bullion coin, half of what you pay is collector premium. A bullion dealer buying it back may pay little more than gold value, so that extra is at risk.<\/p><h2>Tax points for UK collectors<\/h2><p>HMRC's VAT rules for investment gold cover coin types normally sold at no more than 180% of their gold value. A coin type sold well above that may fall outside the exemption, so check whether VAT is included before buying (see <a href=\"investment-gold-tax}}\">VAT on investment gold<\/a>). For Capital Gains Tax, HMRC treats Sovereigns from 1837 onwards and Britannias as sterling currency, which is exempt. Sovereigns minted before 1837 are not legal tender; HMRC treats them as chattels instead.<\/p><h2>When you overpay<\/h2><p>If your aim is to own gold, a high <a href=\"premium}}\">premium over spot<\/a> for a box and a certificate rarely pays off. Collecting is a hobby with its own knowledge and risks. For investment, compare the <a href=\"\/gb\/product\/1-oz-britannia-gold-coin\/\">bullion Britannia prices from UK dealers<\/a> and the <a href=\"\/gb\/cheapest-gold-coins\/\">cheapest gold coins by delivered price<\/a>, and keep proofs for when you want the coin itself.<\/p><\/div><h2>Related terms<\/h2><p class=\"gl-chips\"><a class=\"gl-chip\" href=\"https:\/\/metalsradar.com\/gb\/glossary\/bullion\/\">Bullion<\/a> <a class=\"gl-chip\" href=\"https:\/\/metalsradar.com\/gb\/glossary\/premium-over-spot\/\">Premium Over Spot<\/a> <a class=\"gl-chip\" href=\"https:\/\/metalsradar.com\/gb\/glossary\/investment-gold-vat\/\">Investment Gold and VAT in the UK<\/a> <a class=\"gl-chip\" href=\"https:\/\/metalsradar.com\/gb\/glossary\/bid-ask-spread\/\">Bid-Ask Spread<\/a><\/p><section class=\"mrf-faq\"><h2>FAQ<\/h2><div class=\"faq-list\"><details open><summary><h3>Are proof coins a good investment?<\/h3><\/summary><div class=\"a\"><p>Proof coins can hold value with collectors, but you pay well above metal value and bullion dealers often buy them back near gold value, so they suit collectors more than investors.<\/p><\/div><\/details><details><summary><h3>Are old Sovereigns worth more than gold value?<\/h3><\/summary><div class=\"a\"><p>Common dates usually trade close to bullion prices, while rare dates, mint marks and coins in top condition can sell for much more to collectors.<\/p><\/div><\/details><details><summary><h3>Are proof Sovereigns exempt from Capital Gains Tax?<\/h3><\/summary><div class=\"a\"><p>HMRC treats Sovereigns minted in 1837 or later as sterling currency, which is exempt from Capital Gains Tax; this does not depend on the finish.<\/p><\/div><\/details><\/div><\/section><details class=\"gl-src-list\"><summary>Sources<\/summary><ul><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.gov.uk\/guidance\/gold-acquisitions-imports-investments-and-vat-notice-70121\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">HMRC: Gold acquisitions, imports, investments and VAT (VAT Notice 701\/21)<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.gov.uk\/hmrc-internal-manuals\/capital-gains-manual\/cg78305\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">HMRC Capital Gains Manual CG78305: Foreign currency<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.royalmint.com\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">The Royal Mint<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/details><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"parent":20233,"menu_order":9,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"_kad_blocks_custom_css":"","_kad_blocks_head_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_body_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_footer_custom_js":"","_kad_post_transparent":"","_kad_post_title":"","_kad_post_layout":"","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false,"_kad_post_classname":"","_glsr_average":0,"_glsr_ranking":0,"_glsr_reviews":0,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-20305","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"taxonomy_info":[],"featured_image_src_large":false,"author_info":{"display_name":"","author_link":"https:\/\/metalsradar.com\/gb\/"},"comment_info":0,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/metalsradar.com\/gb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/20305","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/metalsradar.com\/gb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/metalsradar.com\/gb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/metalsradar.com\/gb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=20305"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/metalsradar.com\/gb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/20305\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":20393,"href":"https:\/\/metalsradar.com\/gb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/20305\/revisions\/20393"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/metalsradar.com\/gb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/20233"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/metalsradar.com\/gb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=20305"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}