1 Guinea - George III Pattern

George III's accession in 1760 prompted a review of the coinage, and several pattern guineas were produced in 1761 as the new administration considered a reformed gold series. None were adopted for circulation — the existing guinea design, essentially unchanged since the reign of William III, limped on for another half-century until the sovereign replaced it entirely in 1817.

Patterns of this period were typically struck in small numbers for Privy Council inspection or as presentation pieces, making survival rates genuinely low rather than artificially so.