Gold Unite of James I: Second Coinage, Kingdom of England

Historical Context

Following the death of Queen Elizabeth I on 24 March 1603, King James VI of Scotland acceded to the thrones of England and Ireland as James I, establishing the Stuart dynasty south of the border. In October 1604, James proclaimed himself "King of Great Britain." However, this status represented a personal dynastic union—the Union of the Crowns—rather than an integrated state. England and Scotland retained separate legislative parliaments, judicial systems, and sovereign coinages until the Act of Union in 1707.

Under James I's First Coinage (1603–1604), the English monetary authorities retained the Elizabethan standard for the sovereign of crown gold (22 carats, or 0.9167 fine), weighing approximately 171.94 grains (approximately 11.14 g) and valued at 20 shillings. Because the market valuation of gold relative to silver was higher on continental European exchanges than the legal mint ratio enforced in England, English gold specie flowed rapidly abroad to be melted or exchanged at a premium.

To counter this severe drain of bullion, the Crown authorized the Second Coinage via an indenture dated 11 November 1604. The statutory weight of the 20-shilling gold coin was reduced from approximately 171.94 grains to 154.838 grains (approximately 10.033 g). This new piece was designated the unite to celebrate James's ideological program of regal union between England and Scotland.

Despite this reduction in standard weight, continental price disparities continued to draw gold out of the realm. On 23 November 1611, James issued a royal proclamation raising the nominal value of all current English gold coins by 10% (equivalent to two shillings in every twenty). Consequently, the unite was officially re-tariffed from 20 shillings to 22 shillings. The denomination was minted at this valuation until 1619, when the Third Coinage introduced the lighter, 20-shilling laurel (weighing 140.5 grains, or approximately 9.10 g) to re-establish a twenty-shilling unit.

Obverse Iconographic Composition

The obverse of the Second Coinage unite exhibits a half-length, crowned, and cuirassed portrait bust of King James I facing dexter (right), enclosed within an inner beaded ring. The monarch is depicted as a sovereign commander and ruler of both realms, bearing imperial regalia:

• Right Hand: James clasps an upright sceptre resting against his right shoulder, symbolising royal governance and executive authority.
• Left Hand: Held at waist level, his hand supports the globus cruciger (the orb topped with a cross pattée), signifying Christian kingship and universal dominion.
• Crown: The imperial crown features jewelled arches that rise upward and punctuate the inner circumference, breaking into the legend border between 11 and 12 o'clock.
• Armor: The king wears elaborate plate armor over a high ruff.

In the Fifth Bust series (struck from 1613 to 1619), portrait dies are marked by distinct stylistic changes: the king's beard is noticeably longer and pointed, his cuirass is embellished with engraved scroll garnishing, and the truncation of the bust is broadened and squared across the base.

Obverse Epigraphy and Inscriptions

The obverse inscription encircles the portrait between inner and outer beaded borders, rendered in Latin capital majuscules (capitalis quadrata).

• Language: Latin
• Standard Inscription: IACOBVS · D : G : MA : BRI : FRA : ET : HI : REX (with minor punctuation variants depending on the die)
• Expansion: Iacobus Dei Gratia Magnae Britanniae, Franciae et Hiberniae Rex
• English Translation: "James, by the grace of God, King of Great Britain, France, and Ireland"
• Lettering and Punctuation: Epigraphic execution features Roman lettering with serifs. Words and abbreviated titles are separated by single pellet stops and double colons (:). On dies from the Fifth Bust group, the legend begins after an initial mark (such as a cinquefoil) positioned near the top of the coin, slightly to the left of the imperial cross on the crown.

Reverse Iconographic Composition

The reverse design displays a square-topped, garnished royal escutcheon surmounted by an ornate imperial crown with arches. Flanking the shield are the majuscule letters of the royal cypher: I on the heraldic dexter side (viewer's left) and R on the sinister side (viewer's right), abbreviating Iacobus Rex ("King James").

The royal arms are quartered to reflect the heraldic amalgamation of the Stuart realms:

1. First and Fourth Quarters (heraldic top-left and bottom-right): Quarterly, 1 and 4 France modern (three fleurs-de-lis), 2 and 3 England (three lions passant guardant in pale). This quartering preserved England's historic claim to the French crown.
2. Second Quarter (heraldic top-right): Scotland (a lion rampant within a double tressure flory-counterflory).
3. Third Quarter (heraldic bottom-left): Ireland (a harp).

This heraldic composition explicitly placed the arms of Scotland and Ireland into equal partnership with the combined arms of England and France, expressing a shared monarchy rather than a legally unified English-Scottish state.

Reverse Epigraphy and Inscriptions

The reverse circumscription is framed within inner and outer beaded circles, beginning at the top after the initial mintmark.

• Language: Latin
• Legend: FACIAM · EOS · IN · GENTEM · VNAM
• Transliteration: Faciam eos in gentem unam
• English Translation: "I will make them one nation"
• Biblical Origin: The text is derived directly from the Latin Clementine Vulgate, Ezekiel (Prophetia Ezechielis) 37:22: "Et faciam eos in gentem unam in terra in montibus Israhel, et rex unus erit omnibus imperans..." ("And I will make them one nation in the land upon the mountains of Israel, and one king shall be king to them all").
• Epigraphic Conventions: The letter V is employed for the vowel U (as in VNAM), following classical Latin orthography. Words are divided by distinct pellet stops.

Typology and Documented Variants

Second Coinage unites produced at the Tower Mint in London are catalogued into five primary portrait bust classes, determined by changes in the king's hair, beard, truncation, and armor:

1. First Bust (1604–1605): Characterized by plain, undecorated armor and a short beard. Initial mark: Lis.
2. Second Bust (1605–1606): Features lightly engraved floral patterns on the cuirass and a slightly longer beard. Initial marks: Lis, Rose.
3. Third Bust (1606–1607): Displays a shorter bust truncation and adjusted facial features. Initial mark: Escallop.
4. Fourth Bust (1607–1613): Depicts a wider torso with a fuller beard; the crown arches break visibly into the outer legend border. Initial marks: Grapes, Coronet, Key, Bell, Mullet, Tower, Trefoil.
5. Fifth Bust (1613–1619): Portrays James with a long, pointed beard and richly garnished scroll armor across the chest. Initial marks: Cinquefoil (1613–1615), Tun (1615–1616), Book (1616–1617), Crescent (1617–1618), Plain cross (1618–1619), and Saltire (1619).

Documented Institutional Specimens (for Comparison)

Institutional holdings provide baseline physical and diagnostic comparisons for the series:

• Cleveland Museum of Art (Norweb Collection, acc. no. 1969.189): Struck with initial mark cinquefoil (Fifth Bust, 1613–1615). Diameter: 37 mm; weight: 9.958 g.
• Museums Victoria (Item NU 25634): Struck with initial mark cinquefoil (Fifth Bust, 1613–1615). Diameter: 38 mm; weight: 9.824 g.
• British Museum (reg. no. C_E-664): Tower Mint Second Coinage unite. Weight: 10.050 g.

Scholarly Debates and Attribution Limitations

Nature of the 1611 Currency Adjustment

Certain older numismatic accounts and museum collection summaries record that the unite was introduced after gold had been "down-rated by ten percent and then restored in 1611." Archival and documentary evidence demonstrates that this is incorrect. The Crown did not lower the coin's face value prior to 1611; rather, the 23 November 1611 proclamation enacted an outright upward revaluation of circulating gold by 10% to halt the illicit outflow of coin to Europe. The unite's statutory tender value shifted directly from 20 shillings to 22 shillings, maintaining its original metal standard until the introduction of the laurel in 1619.

Inscription Transcription in Legacy Catalogues

Legacy museum documentation has occasionally misidentified the obverse legend on Second Coinage unites. For instance, early catalogue records for Cleveland Museum specimen 1969.189 transcribed the obverse legend as IACOBVS D G ANG SCO FRAN ET HIB REX, conflating it with the First Coinage sovereign legend. The supplied museum photograph shows that it bears the standard Second Coinage formula featuring the Great Britain title: IACOBVS · D : G : MA : BRI : FRA : ET : HI : REX.

Attribution Limitations for Undocumented Dies

While institutional collections preserve well-documented specimens across all five bust classes, hammered coinage of this era exhibits substantial variation in die carving, punch application, and strike quality. The gallery reproduces the identified CMA specimen. A catalogue-level ruler and denomination identification is not a physical examination or a certified match to a particular published die. Exact die linkage and condition explanations remain unassigned.

References

1. Unite: James I, Obverse; Shield of Arms, Reverse (Accession 1969.189). Cleveland Museum of Art, Norweb Collection
2. Coin – Unite, James I, England, Great Britain, 1613–1615 (Item NU 25634). Museums Victoria Collections
3. Gold Unite of James I, Second Coinage (Reg. C_E-664). British Museum Department of Coins and Medals
4. Mathematics at the Mint: A Seventeenth-Century Saga. British Numismatic Journal (C. E. Challis and F. H. Gould)
5. Object 17: Two James I Gold Coins (1612–15). Exeter College 60 Objects, University of Oxford
6. Biblia Sacra Vulgata (Clementine Vulgate). Ezechiel (Prophetia Ezechielis) 37:22
7. English Hammered Coinage, Volume II: Edward I to Charles II, 1272–1662. J. J. North (3rd rev. ed., 1991), pp. 146–149
8. SCBI 57: The Herbert Schneider Collection, Part II: English Gold Coins 1603 to the 20th Century. Peter Woodhead (Spink, 2002), no. 28