King Edward VII ascended to the British throne in 1901 (Wikipedia, 2009) but it was not until 1902 that sovereigns were struck bearing his bust. Sovereigns were struck at all Australian branches of the Royal mint throughout his reign up until his death in 1910. Mintages throughout the period were generally high but a combination of the rough handling process at the mint and between banks, and the natural softness of gold, ensured that higher mint state examples have become virtually impossible to source. The dates are generally available up to MS63 at best with none being certified by PCGS at MS65 as of yet (PCGS Population Chart, 2009) .