Although the production of gold Sovereigns in England slowed down in 1917, various branch mints across the world, such as those in Canada, Australia, India and South Africa, continued to produce the coin. One way to distinguish these Sovereigns from each other is by looking at the mint mark at the base of the reverse of the coin, positioned beneath the image of St George, which indicates a coin’s origin.

The obverse features a left-facing, uncrowned portrait of George V, skilfully created by the renowned Australian sculptor and medallist Edgar Bertram Mackennal, whose work the king avidly admired. George V acceded to the throne in May 1910 following the death of his father, Edward VII, and his coronation coincided with the release of his inaugural Sovereign in 1911.