A 1839 Una and the Lion proof set, pictured left, is expected to sell for £200,000-260,000 at Dix Noonan Webb on September 14. The set of 15 coins is in virtually mint state and housed in the original contemporary fitted case. It has been in a private collection since 1938.
Each coin depicts Queen Victoria as Una guiding the British lion together with William Wyon’s famous Young Head portrait of the queen. The evidence suggests they were probably only intended as proof coins rather than for circulation.