10 oz The Royal Mint Una and the Lion Silver Bar

The Royal Mint Una and the Lion 10 oz Silver Bar

The 10 oz Una and the Lion silver bar is the inaugural release of The Royal Mint's Great Engravers bullion bar series, carrying a design with nearly two centuries of numismatic heritage. Each bar contains 10 troy ounces of .9999 fine silver (four nines purity, above the .999 industry standard) with a mintage of just 6,100 pieces worldwide.

The design originates from William Wyon's 1839 five-pound coin, created to commemorate Queen Victoria's coronation. It was the first time a British monarch appeared on a coin as a fictional character: Lady Una from Edmund Spenser's 1590 epic poem The Faerie Queene. Una symbolises Truth and the True Church, walking beside a lion representing England's strength. The Royal Mint Museum has called the 1839 original "one of the most beautiful coins in the world," and specimens from the original striking have sold at auction for over £4.2 million.

The modern bullion bar version was designed by Jody Clark, who reinterpreted Wyon's composition for a contemporary format. Clark's design shifts the symbolism: where the 1839 coin showed Victoria leading the lion (monarch leading the nation), the bar shows Una and the lion standing side by side, both facing forward, suggesting monarch and nation facing the future together. The bars are struck (minted) rather than cast, producing sharper detail and a prooflike surface finish.

Initial distribution was exclusive to LPM Hong Kong in February 2021 before widening to global dealers. At 6,100 pieces, the 10 oz bar is genuinely limited compared to open-mintage bullion products, and secondary market premiums have reflected this scarcity. The Great Engravers series name signals potential future releases featuring other historic Royal Mint engravers' work.

Una and the Lion Bar Technical Details

Other Sizes in the Great Engravers Series

The mintage figures across the range show a deliberate scarcity gradient. The 1 oz silver bar at 35,000 pieces is the most accessible entry point, while the 100 oz bar at just 1,200 pieces is the rarest. The 10 oz bar sits in between at 6,100 pieces, offering a balance between collectible scarcity and practical investment weight.

The 100 oz (3.21 kg) silver bar is noteworthy for being a minted (struck) bar at that size. Most bars above 10 oz are cast rather than struck, because the precision required for minted production becomes increasingly difficult and expensive at larger sizes. The Royal Mint's decision to produce a struck 100 oz bar reflects the premium positioning of the Great Engravers programme, where design quality and surface finish are central to the product's value proposition. The .9999 purity across all sizes in the range exceeds the .999 industry standard for silver bullion, matching the four-nines purity used by The Royal Mint on its Queen's Beasts silver coins.

Una and the Lion Bar Tax Treatment

A common misunderstanding is that all Royal Mint products are CGT-exempt in the UK. This is not the case. Only UK legal tender coins qualify for CGT exemption. The Una and the Lion bullion bars have no face value and are not legal tender, so they carry CGT liability despite being produced by The Royal Mint.

United Kingdom

Silver bars are subject to 20% VAT on purchase regardless of manufacturer. Not CGT-exempt. The Royal Mint's own website clearly distinguishes between its legal tender coins (CGT-exempt) and its bullion bars (CGT-liable). For UK buyers seeking CGT-exempt silver, the 10 oz Queen's Beasts silver (which carries legal tender status and a £10 face value) is a better option from the same mint. Gold Una and the Lion bars are VAT-free as investment gold but remain CGT-liable.

United States

The Royal Mint qualifies as an LBMA-accredited producer, making the .9999 silver bar eligible for Precious Metals IRA inclusion under IRS Section 408(m). State sales tax varies. Capital gains taxed at the 28% collectibles rate for long-term holdings.

Canada

GST/HST exempt as silver bullion exceeding the .999 purity threshold. RRSP eligible through approved dealers.

Australia

GST-free as investment-grade silver at 99.9% purity. Standard CGT rules apply with a 50% discount for holdings over 12 months.

Singapore and Hong Kong

Singapore exempts qualifying silver bars from GST under the IPM scheme. Hong Kong has no sales tax, import duty, or capital gains tax. The initial exclusive distribution through LPM Hong Kong reflects strong collector demand in Asian markets.

From William Wyon's 1839 Masterpiece to Modern Bullion

William Wyon was appointed Chief Engraver of the Royal Mint in 1828 and held the position until his death in 1851. His portfolio includes the iconic "Young Head" Victoria portrait used on British coinage throughout the early Victorian period. The Una and the Lion design, engraved for the 1839 five-pound coin, is widely considered his masterpiece.

The 1839 coins were never intended for circulation. They were presentation pieces produced in small quantities, with variations in metal composition, hairband design, edge lettering, and reverse inscription. The Latin motto "DIRIGE DEUS GRESSUS MEOS" (May God direct my steps) appeared on the reverse. The five-pound denomination made them the lightest British five-pound coin at approximately 38.7 to 39.3 grams. Only a few hundred were struck, and surviving examples are among the most valuable British coins at auction.

The design draws from Edmund Spenser's The Faerie Queene, published in 1590. In the poem, Una represents Truth and the True Church, accompanied by a lion who becomes her faithful protector after being moved by her beauty and virtue. Depicting Victoria as a fictional character was bold for 1839, when portraying a reigning monarch outside their official capacity was unconventional. The symbolism worked because it flattered Victoria as the embodiment of virtue guiding the nation (represented by the lion) into a new era.

The design resurfaced multiple times before the 2021 bullion bars. A Millennium variant in 2000 substituted "MM" and "2000 AD" for the date. The same Latin inscription appeared on the 2012 five-pound crown commemorating Elizabeth II's Diamond Jubilee. A 2019 Two-Ounce Gold Proof Coin was issued as a collector piece. The 2021 Great Engravers bullion bars, designed by Jody Clark, marked the first time the Una and the Lion concept was produced as a bullion product intended for investment buyers rather than collectors or commemorative purposes.

Una and the Lion vs Other Premium 10 oz Silver Bars

The Una and the Lion bar occupies a premium niche: a limited-mintage, design-led bar from a sovereign mint. Its competitors differ depending on what the buyer prioritises.

The 10 oz Queen's Beasts silver bar from the same mint is the closest competitor in provenance and purity (both .9999 fine). The deciding factor for UK buyers is CGT treatment: Queen's Beasts products are legal tender and CGT-exempt, while Una bars are not. Both series have completed production, fixing supply. The Queen's Beasts bars had unlimited mintage during their production run, while Una bars were limited to 6,100, making the Una bar scarcer but more expensive.

The 10 oz PAMP Lunar silver bar offers a different kind of premium bar: annually rotating designs with VERISCAN authentication from the world's most recognised private refiner. PAMP Lunar bars have unlimited mintage and are .999 fine (three nines versus Una's four). The PAMP bar trades at lower premiums than the Una bar but lacks the historical design pedigree and Royal Mint provenance. PAMP's advantage is continuous production and superior authentication technology.

For buyers focused on value rather than design heritage, generic 10 oz silver bars from LBMA-accredited refiners deliver the same weight of silver at substantially lower premiums. The premium gap between a Una bar and a generic bar reflects the Royal Mint brand, .9999 purity, limited mintage, and the 187-year design heritage. For pure metal investment, this premium is difficult to justify. For buyers who value provenance and design alongside their silver holding, the Una bar offers something genuinely unique in the bullion market.