George II's accession in June 1727 required immediate recoinage to replace his father's portrait on circulating gold. The dies for this first guinea portrait were prepared under John Croker, the German-born chief engraver at the Tower Mint, who had served under George I and carried his position into the new reign. Production ran only through 1728 before the portrait was revised, making this among the shortest-lived guinea types of the 18th century.
Spink 3671 examples in circulated grades are not especially rare, but problem-free survivors with full mint bloom are genuinely scarce — the 22-carat gold wore predictably through daily commercial use.
George II's accession in June 1727 required immediate recoinage to replace his father's portrait on circulating gold. The dies for this first guinea portrait were prepared under John Croker, the German-born chief engraver at the Tower Mint, who had served under George I and carried his position into the new reign. Production ran only through 1728 before the portrait was revised, making this among the shortest-lived guinea types of the 18th century.
Spink 3671 examples in circulated grades are not especially rare, but problem-free survivors with full mint bloom are genuinely scarce — the 22-carat gold wore predictably through daily commercial use.