Royal Mint Una and the Lion Gold

A Victorian Masterpiece in Modern Bullion

The Una and the Lion series from The Royal Mint draws on one of the most celebrated coin designs in British history. The original 1839 five-pound piece, engraved by William Wyon, depicted Queen Victoria as Lady Una from Edmund Spenser's epic poem The Faerie Queene, walking beside a lion representing England. It was the first time a British monarch appeared on a coin as a fictional character, and The Royal Mint Museum describes it as "one of the most beautiful coins in the world." An original 1839 specimen sold at auction for GBP 4.2 million in 2024.

The modern bullion version launched in 2021 as the inaugural release in The Royal Mint's "Great Engravers" bar series. Designed by Jody Clark, the contemporary interpretation shifts the symbolism: Una now holds the monarch's orb and sceptre, standing side by side with the lion, both facing forward rather than walking. The bars are struck (minted) rather than cast, giving them sharper detail than typical bullion bars and a prooflike surface finish.

The series is available as 1oz gold bars and silver bars in 1oz, 10oz, and 100oz sizes. The gold bar carries a 4,000-piece mintage, making it considerably scarcer than flagship products like the Gold Britannia. For buyers who want Royal Mint provenance with a collectible edge, the Una and the Lion occupies a distinctive position: closer to metal value than proof coins, but with limited mintage and a 187-year design heritage that no other modern bullion bar can match.

Una and the Lion Gold Bar Specifications

The bar is struck rather than cast, a production method more commonly associated with coins. This gives the Una and the Lion sharper relief and a more detailed finish than the poured or cast bars produced by most refineries. The reverse carries The Royal Mint shield logo with weight and purity markings, and each bar ships in sealed Royal Mint packaging.

The silver range extends to a 100oz (3.21kg) minted bar, which is unusually large for a struck product. Most minted bars top out at 10oz, with larger sizes typically produced by casting. The 100oz silver bar had a mintage of just 1,200 pieces.

A separate 1oz gold coin version also exists as a proof collector piece with a face value, making it UK legal tender. The distinction between bar and coin matters significantly for tax purposes.

The Great Engravers series name signals a broader programme. Future releases are expected to feature other historic Royal Mint engravers' work, potentially including Pistrucci's St George and the Dragon and Benedetto's Britannia. The Una and the Lion was the inaugural release, setting the standard for the series in terms of production quality and design ambition. Initial distribution was exclusive to LPM Hong Kong in February 2021 before widening to global dealers.

Tax Treatment of Una and the Lion Gold Bars

The gold Una and the Lion bar is VAT-free in the United Kingdom as investment gold, meeting the requirement of 995+ fine purity. This applies to all gold bars regardless of manufacturer, so the Royal Mint name provides no additional VAT advantage here.

The critical distinction is capital gains tax. Una and the Lion bars are not CGT-exempt in the UK. Only British legal tender coins qualify for CGT exemption, and bars have no face value regardless of which mint produces them. This is a common source of confusion: the Royal Mint produces both CGT-exempt coins (Britannia, Sovereign) and non-exempt bars (Una and the Lion, other Great Engravers bars). The collector coin versions of Una and the Lion, which carry face values and legal tender status, are CGT-exempt. The bullion bars are not.

For UK buyers who prioritise tax efficiency, the 1oz Gold Britannia offers both VAT exemption and CGT exemption. The Una and the Lion bar trades that CGT advantage for lower mintage and collectible appeal. The current CGT annual exempt amount is GBP 3,000, so gains below that threshold are untaxed regardless.

In the United States, the gold bar qualifies for IRA inclusion because The Royal Mint is LBMA-accredited and the bar meets the 99.5%+ purity requirement under IRS Section 408(m). State sales tax treatment varies; roughly 35 states exempt investment bullion entirely.

In Canada, the bar is GST/HST-exempt as investment gold at 99.5%+ purity. It is also RRSP and TFSA eligible through approved custodians. Australia treats it as GST-free investment gold. In the EU, gold bars meeting the 995+ fineness standard are VAT-exempt under the Investment Gold Directive. Singapore classifies it as an Investment Precious Metal (IPM), exempt from the 9% GST. Hong Kong levies no sales tax or import duty on gold bullion.

Una and the Lion vs Other Premium Gold Bars

The Una and the Lion competes in a small segment of the bullion bar market: premium, design-focused minted bars from recognised institutions. Most gold bars are plain branded products from LBMA refiners. A handful carry distinctive designs and limited mintages that generate secondary-market premiums.

The closest competitor is the 1oz PAMP Suisse Fortuna bar. PAMP has wider global distribution and its VERISCAN digital authentication system, which allows buyers to verify a bar's unique surface pattern via smartphone. The Una and the Lion lacks digital authentication but offers something PAMP cannot: a design with a 187-year lineage tied to one of the most famous coins in numismatic history. PAMP's Lady Fortuna has been produced since 1979; the Una and the Lion traces to 1839.

Against generic LBMA bars from Valcambi, Heraeus, or Argor-Heraeus, the Una and the Lion commands a higher premium. Generic bars trade on weight and purity alone, with premiums as low as possible. The Una bar adds Royal Mint branding, limited mintage, and the struck finish. Buyers focused purely on accumulating gold at the lowest cost per ounce should look at generic bars instead.

Perth Mint produces minted gold bars with the kangaroo design, offering similar production quality. Perth bars have wider availability, particularly in the Asia-Pacific market. The Una and the Lion's advantage is its design heritage and collector crossover appeal, though Perth's global dealer network makes resale more straightforward in some markets.

Compared to the 1oz Gold Britannia coin, the Una bar loses on tax efficiency (no CGT exemption), liquidity (Britannias are among the most traded gold products globally), and recognition. It gains on mintage scarcity and aesthetic distinction. Buyers who already hold Britannias for their core position sometimes add Una bars for variety within a Royal Mint allocation.