Bombay Mint sovereign

India had its own distinctive gold coinage during the nineteenth and early twentieth century, however sovereigns and half-sovereigns were also used. Sovereigns minted in Sydney, Australia, were especially popular in India due to their yellow colour,^[1] as they contained silver alloy.^[2]

The possibility of establishing a branch mint in Bombay was initially considered at the turn of the century, however it wasn’t until 1917 that the Government of British India requested that sovereigns be minted locally. Construction of a new building for the purpose began in the early part of 1918, inside the grounds of an existing mint and concluded in May 1918. Dies arrived from London the following month, while automatic weighing machines and two coining presses arrived in early August. ^[1] The fifth branch of the Royal Mint began issuing sovereigns on 15 August using gold shipped from South Africa (thereby avoiding war-time naval blockades).

Under the new Deputy Master, R. R. Kahan, 1,294,372 Sovereigns were struck at the branch mint in Bombay, distinguished from other Sovereigns by the inclusion of a small ‘I’ mint mark for India. The Bombay branch of the Royal Mint ceased operations with the minting of the last sovereign, on 22 April 1919.^[3]

The Indian 15 rupee gold piece, also minted only in 1918, was struck to the same specifications as sovereigns.^[4]

As India prohibits the importation of gold coins,^[5] on 17 February 2013 a new partnership between the Royal Mint and MMTC-PAMP India was announced - a five-year license under which the MMTC-PAMP facility at Rojko-Meo Industrial Estate in District Mewat, Haryana would strike Sovereigns.^[6]