3 Pence - Victoria 1st portrait, Maundy, Gold proof

The 1838 Maundy set marks Victoria's first year on the coinage, struck ahead of her June coronation and distributed as part of the traditional royal almsgiving ceremony observed on Maundy Thursday. Proof strikings in gold were produced for presentation purposes — almost certainly for foreign dignitaries and senior court figures — and were never intended for the Maundy distribution itself, which used standard silver pieces.

Spink 3918 is among the rarer individual denominations from this set in gold proof format. The Royal Mint's records from this transitional period are incomplete enough that precise production figures remain unknown.