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Jubilee head sovereigns have always been my favourite series of sovereigns. Even if the design doesn’t appeal, one cannot deny that the series is an interesting one. With multiple varieties on the obverse and different tail lengths on the reverse, the collector can choose from a wide variety of different collecting possibilities. The series is also very accessible, with almost all date and mintmarks available in bullion grade for under £400, or £600 in Mint State.

A first obverse Jubilee head sovereign.

A second obverse Jubilee head sovereign.

Ignoring the varieties for the moment, the rarest date is the 1887 Sydney. Coin collectors have always considered the date to be the key, and it is indeed rare in mint state. However, as the first Australian sovereign minted to celebrate the Queen’s golden jubilee, the coin was hoarded: Several extremely high-grade examples are known (with amazingly two coins graded PCGS MS66 by PCGS). The rest of the series is reasonably common, with PCGS MS63 coins available for mostly under £1,000.

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Unlike Veiled head, Edward VII, or George V sovereigns, the Jubilee head series of sovereigns is a variety collector’s wonderland. Much has already been written about the rarity of the different versions of the coin that exist, particularly by David “the Jubilee guy” Iverson, so I won’t rehash that information here. Needless to say, the varieties are keenly sought after by those in the know, while even the more casual sovereign collector strives to acquire at least both obverse varieties, and maybe the short tails of 1891 and 1891M as well.

This article wouldn’t be complete without mentioning the holy grail of the Jubilee head sovereign series: The 1891 Sydney with the first obverse. This major rarity—which is known by only a single example—was discovered in 2020 in the United Kingdom, where it later sold at auction for £4,320. This is a world record price for a circulated Jubilee head sovereign, but should the owner wish to sell the coin, I can almost certainly offer him or her a profit.

If you'd like to learn more about the Jubilee head sovereign varieties, click here.

The table below ranks every major variety of Jubilee head sovereign from rarest to most common. We decided to omit the minor JEB varieties for now until Spink and PCGS assign them identification numbers. Collectors who are interested to read more about the JEB varieties can refer to David Iverson’s well-researched publication, “The Jubilee Head Gold Sovereign 1887-1893”. We have also omitted the London proofs of 1887 and 1891, as well as the Australian proofs of 1887, 1888, 1889, 1890, and 1893, which deserve an article in their own right.