George III's accession in 1760 triggered a review of coinage design, and several pattern guineas were struck in 1761 as the new administration considered updating the portrait. None of the 1761 pattern designs entered circulation — the existing guinea coinage continued largely unchanged, and a substantive reform would not arrive until Matthew Boulton's steam-press revolution decades later.
Patterns of this period were struck in very small numbers, primarily for royal approval and cabinet presentation. KM#Pn40 is among a handful of documented survivors.
George III's accession in 1760 triggered a review of coinage design, and several pattern guineas were struck in 1761 as the new administration considered updating the portrait. None of the 1761 pattern designs entered circulation — the existing guinea coinage continued largely unchanged, and a substantive reform would not arrive until Matthew Boulton's steam-press revolution decades later.
Patterns of this period were struck in very small numbers, primarily for royal approval and cabinet presentation. KM#Pn40 is among a handful of documented survivors.