The amount of people who are starting to collect coins and in particular gold coins is on the increase, this is because not only is it a very interesting subject to collect but due to the increasing price of gold it also makes a great investment. There is a vast range of gold coins available to collect but I am going to concentrate on the coins from a particular place the “Isle of Man”. The Isle of Man is a self governing dependency which is located between England and Ireland and as the name suggests is an island. The Isle of Man is only about 342 square miles and has a population of approximately 90,000 and has its own currency which is based on the British currency and because of its independent tax laws has made the Isle of Man a place for off shore bank accounts which has become one of its main sources of income along with tourism.

The Isle of Man produces its own range of gold coins such as the Manx Angels or Manx Crowns these coins are available in various sizes and weights and were first produced in the 18^th century until the middle of the 19^th century. However during the 1970’s when the Krugerrand  became very popular the Isle of Man saw a market to start reproducing there own gold coins again. These coins range in purity from 9ct to 24 ct gold. They produce an Isle of Man gold sovereign which is very similar to the British sovereign and they also produce gold bullion coins such as the Manx coins. The I.O.M. gold sovereign is nearly exactly the same as the British one but instead of having George and the Dragon on the back it has a Norse warrior on horseback and is available in the same sizes as the British Sovereign and made from 22ct gold. They also produce a range of Gold coins in different denominations such as the Manx golden pound or two pound and five pound coins.

One of the most famous Isle of Man animals is the Manx cat and one of the most popular gold coins to collect is the Manx cat crowns which are made every year with a picture of a different cat on the reverse side these coins were first minted in 1988 and have become very collectible and the coins from the first 10 years can be quite hard to come across. There are some of these Coins available on eBay at the moment or you can search on the internet for coin dealers and sites which have various different Isle of Man Manx cat coin made from 24ct gold. They have also produced a wide variety of different commemorative coins of the Isle of Man with lots of different subjects such as the famous Isle of Mann TT races or subjects such as Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings sets.

The Isle of Man gold coins also produce a range called Isle of Man Angels these angel coins are made from 24ct gold and are released every year at Christmas time and depict one of the 12 days of Christmas theme. These coins are only released in limited numbers so have become highly collectible and sought after. The reverse side depicts St Michael killing the dragon but the privy mark is in relation to the 12 days of Christmas in 2009 this was the sixth day so had six geese are laying as a privy mark and limited to about 1,000 coins. Have a look on the internet for great bargains which can be picked up in Isle of Man gold coins they are nice to collect and will only increase in value making Isle of Man gold coins investments worthwhile. At the Moment the 1/10 oz Isle of Man Manx Cat coins are selling for approximately £110 on eBay.

According to Cookson’s gold website, the price of gold this month has had a high of £28.27 per gram on Tuesday 9^th November and a low of £26.86 per gram on Wednesday 3^rd November, bringing the average for the month so far to £27.50 per gram.

The average price of 9 carat scrap gold for the month is £9.95 per gram.  The 14 carat scrap average is £15.53 per gram, the 18 carat scrap average is £19.91 per gram and the 22 carat scrap average is £24.31 per gram.

Let’s take a look at the prices that gold bullion, gold coins and gold scrap was sold for on eBay this month:

Krugerrands

The South African Krugerrand is a 1 ounce gold bullion coin.

On the 27^th November, a 1974 Krugerrand sold for £890 after receiving 3 bids.

Also on 27^th November a set of three Krugerrands sold for £2,600 after receiving 6 bids, making the price just under £867 each.

In eBay shops a buy-it-now price of £925 was achieved for a Krugerrand in immaculate condition

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Gold sovereign coins

Gold sovereign coins are always popular on eBay, and this month is no exception.  The full gold sovereign weighs a fraction under 8g of 22 carat gold.

The common George V full gold sovereign has been selling for around £210-220 this month, although a 1917 sovereign from the Melbourne Mint sold for £266 on 28^th November.

A high price was achieved for a rare 1817 George III sovereign in uncirculated condition, which went for £1,295 on 2^nd November.

The cheapest price paid for a full sovereign was £185 for a 1974 sovereign on 20^th November. The description and picture of this coin was so bad that the buyer had to take a risk with what they were getting.

Someone was lucky enough to pick up a real bargain with a 1906 half sovereign going for just £75. At that price you could buy one of the new quarter sovereigns.

Scrap Gold

Scrap gold is something else that continues to sell well on eBay with the prices achieved being close to what you would get by taking your scrap gold direct to a dealer.  On 28^th November 29.4g of 9 carat scrap gold sold for £310.85 which at just over £10.57 per gram is a little above market price.