Jardines Galleries · The only crown the ZAR ever issued · 4,357 minted · One-year type
The 1892 Double Shaft Crown.
The only crown-sized silver coin ever issued by the Zuid-Afrikaansche Republiek — a five-shilling silver struck at the Royal Prussian Mint in Berlin, sharing the famous "double shaft" error and "O.S." initials with its gold siblings, the Pond and Half Pond. Catalogued KM#8.2 · Hern Z36 · Davenport-60. Mintage just 4,357 pieces before the Berlin Mint corrected the dies. Together with its corrected sibling (KM#8.1 · 14,000 minted), the Crown is a one-year type — the controversy ended further production before a 1893 issue could be struck. The 2022 Heritage Cape Coral PR64 PCGS realised $15,600; modern proof market estimates run $8,000 – $10,000 at PR64.
The only Crown
The 1892 Crown is the only five-shilling silver coin the Zuid-Afrikaansche Republiek ever issued. It was meant to be a starting denomination, not a single year's curiosity — but the "O.S." controversy brought such political embarrassment that the crown was quietly retired after 1892, with no successor ever struck. Even the corrected single-shaft variety (KM#8.1) ran only later in the same year. From 1893 onward, the half crown became the largest silver denomination in the Pretoria-struck programme.
The error in silver
Three coins in the 1892 ZAR programme carry the famous double-shaft error and "O.S." initials: the gold Double Shaft Pond, the gold Double Shaft Half Pond, and this silver Crown. The silver leaf of that triad is the most affordable entry into the controversy — VF examples accessible at $300 – $500, where the gold equivalents trade in the multi-thousands. The same three coins reappear in the 1892 Proof Set as the three error coins among nine, captured one final time in their original Berlin presentation state.
The 1892 Crown variety pair
Two states · One year · BerlinThe original error. Two-shaft European wagon, equal-sized wheels, "O.S." on Kruger's truncation. Quickly pulled when the Berlin Mint was informed of the controversy — the figure here represents the small batch that escaped before correction.
The corrected variety. Single-shaft disselboom, larger rear wheels, no initials — the proper Boer wagon as it was meant to be depicted. Roughly three times the mintage of its sibling, but still scarce: the controversy had ended any plans for a 1893 second year.
Both varieties · same year · same Berlin Mint. The 1892 Crown is the only ZAR five-shilling ever made. Together they total just ~18,357 pieces across both varieties — a vanishingly small five-shilling census by world-coinage standards.
The story
Berlin · 1892 · The OS controversy in five-shilling silverThe crown — 5 shillings — was the largest silver coin issued by the Zuid-Afrikaansche Republiek, and it was struck only in 1892. Like its gold siblings — the Pond and Half Pond of the same year — the Crown exists in two varieties: the original "double shaft" error and the corrected "single shaft" version that followed.
When the Berlin Mint was informed of the design problem, the dies for the other denominations were immediately changed, so only small numbers of the 5-shillings, half pond, and pond entered circulation in their original state. The 1892 crown is therefore a one-year type — the only crown ever issued by the ZAR. After 1892 the denomination disappeared from the Pretoria Mint's programme; the half crown took over as the largest silver denomination from 1893 onward.
The Double Shaft variety had a mintage of approximately 4,357 pieces; the corrected Single Shaft variety had a higher mintage of 14,000. All crowns were struck at the Royal Prussian Mint in Berlin, as the Pretoria Mint was not yet operational in 1892.
The obverse features the bearded bust of President Paul Kruger facing left, with engraver Otto Schultz's initials "O.S." on the truncation — interpreted in Afrikaans as "os" (ox), adding political embarrassment to the design error. The reverse shows the ZAR coat of arms, which incorporates the image of a Voortrekker wagon. The error depicts a European-style two-shafted wagon with wheels of the same size, where the correct Boer wagon has a single shaft (the disselboom) and larger rear wheels.
The wagon correction
Three Design ChangesDouble Shaft
- Wagon shafts Two · European cart style
- Wheels Front & rear equal size
- Engraver mark "O.S." on Kruger's truncation
- Source error Berlin engraver unfamiliar with Boer wagon design
Single Shaft
- Wagon shaft One · the disselboom
- Wheels Rear larger than front · proper Boer wagon
- Engraver mark "O.S." removed
- Result Authentic depiction of the Voortrekker ox-wagon
Otto Schultz signed the dies with his initials "O.S." on Kruger's truncation. In Afrikaans, the same two letters spell "os" — meaning "ox". A serious-faced President of the Republic appearing to be labelled "ox" on his own coinage was a political embarrassment Berlin had not anticipated. (The same controversy is detailed in the Error Coin Encyclopedia and on the Berlin Mint Connection page.)
The archival timeline
New Research · WCNS Part 3 · Nortje 2025Pierre H. Nortje's The ZAR Coinage of 1892, Part 3 — published by the Western Cape Numismatic Society in May 2025 — works from documents in the National Archives of South Africa, Pretoria, accessed by WCNS webmaster Derick Rabe. The records fix two production facts that earlier accounts left soft: when the Pretoria Mint switched from double-shaft to single-shaft dies, and how many double-shaft crowns must therefore have been struck.
The hand-over moment is 19 January 1893. Every five-shilling piece struck in Pretoria before that date came from the original Berlin-cut double-shaft dies — no single-shaft dies yet existed in the Republic. Modifications to the drawbar of the coining press in April 1893 then required new dies to be cut, and it was that re-cut generation that carried the corrected single-shaft wagon.
Reading the archival numbers against Becklake's well-known total of 46,000 crowns produced in 1892–93 gives a clean accounting: approximately 20,000 double-shaft crowns were struck in Pretoria before the January 1893 cut-over, 14,000 single-shaft pieces followed and entered circulation, and the remaining ~32,000 dies-worth of planchets were melted down and re-struck as shilling pieces. The double-shaft variety is therefore not "the small first run" of older retellings — it is the entire first phase of Pretoria crown production.
Technical specifications
Coin details · Physical · Obverse · ReverseThe five-shilling
- Denomination5 Shillings · Crown
- Year1892 · one-year type
- MintRoyal Prussian Mint, Berlin
- EngraverOtto Schultz
- CatalogKM#8.2 · Hern Z36 · Dav-60
- VarietiesKM#8.2 (error) · KM#8.1 (corrected)
- DS Mintage4,357 pieces
- SS Mintage14,000 pieces
The specifications
- Weight28.28 g typical · 28.24 g recorded
- Diameter38 – 39 mm
- Composition.925 silver · sterling
- ASW0.8410 oz
- EdgeReeded
- OrientationMedal alignment · 12h
- RarityR8 · "Very Rare"
The obverse
Bearded bust of President Paul Kruger facing left. Legend: ZUID AFRIKAANSCHE REPUBLIEK. Engraver's initials "O.S." on the truncation of the bust — the source of the Afrikaans "os" / "ox" controversy.
The reverse
Oval shield of arms divided in three: lion passant upper left, Boer with rifle upper right, ox wagon at bottom — with two shafts (KM#8.2) and equal wheels — under an upright anchor escutcheon. Frame surmounted by a large eagle, overlapping three "vierkleur" flags on either side. Floral emblems below. Surrounding legend: 5 SHILLINGS * 1892 *.
The Single Shaft Crown
The corrected Single Shaft Crown was struck later in 1892 with the proper wagon design — single shaft, larger rear wheels, no "O.S." initials. With ~14,000 minted, it's roughly three times as common as the error sibling and serves as the more accessible entry to the only crown the ZAR ever produced. Auction records typically run from $80 (worn) to $200 – 300 (very fine).
Auction records
2008 – 2025 · Headline result · 2022 Cape Coral $15,600Selected auction results for the 1892 Double Shaft Crown across recent decades, ordered by date. The headline modern result is the 2022 Heritage Cape Coral PR64 PCGS at $15,600 — the figure cross-referenced from the ZAR Hub market table.
| Date | Auction House | Grade | Realised | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Heritage (estimate) | PR64 NGC | $8,000 – 10,000 (est.) | Proof example |
| 2025 | Heritage (estimate) | PR64 PCGS | $8,000 – 10,000 (est.) | Proof example |
| 2022 | Heritage | PR64 PCGS | $15,600 | Cape Coral Collection |
| 2023 | Spink · Becker Coll.4 | Bold Very Fine | £220 (~$267) | 28.24 g · polished but lustrous |
| 2017 | Goldberg Auctions5 | NGC Unc Details (hairlines) | $400 – 500 (est.) | Light gray · underlying lustre |
| 2015 | Goldberg Auctions5 | NGC AU Details (hairlines) | $600 – 800 (est.) | — |
| 2015 | Bonhams6 | Extremely Fine (light wear) | £324 (~$486) | Good rainbow toning |
| 2008 | Noble Numismatics8 | Nearly Extremely Fine | $300 (est.) | Toned |
| 2008 | Noble Numismatics8 | Good Very Fine | $300 (est.) | Toned |
| 2015 | Noble Numismatics8 | Cleaned, Nearly VF | $500 (est.) | — |
| 2015 | Noble Numismatics8 | Repaired, Good Fine | $400 (est.) | — |
| eA 221 | CNG · Electronic7 | Good VF · light marks | $725 | 28.26 g · 38 mm · double shaft |
Note: Proof examples of the Double Shaft Crown are extremely rare and command significant premiums. The $15,600 PR64 PCGS Cape Coral result in 2022 sets the modern benchmark; the 2025 estimate range at $8,000 – 10,000 for PR64 examples reflects continued strong demand. Circulated examples of the error variety (Bold VF · Good VF · Extremely Fine) trade in the $300 – 750 range, with provenance from the Becker Collection or other documented hoards adding a modest premium. The 2015 Bonhams "rainbow toning" example illustrates the kind of cabinet-toning that can lift a Crown's appeal substantially.
Collector notes
Condition · Variety identification · Provenance · Mintage discrepancy- Condition. The 1892 Crown is often found with light marks or hairlines, as noted in many auction descriptions. The coin's size makes it vulnerable to bag marks; high-grade examples (XF and above) are genuinely rare, and Mint State examples virtually unobtainable outside proof issues.
- Variety identification. The Double Shaft variety can be identified by the wagon with two shafts and wheels of equal size. The Single Shaft variety has a correctly depicted wagon with a single shaft and larger rear wheels. Both are dated 1892 and otherwise share the same Schultz portrait and ZAR coat of arms.
- Provenance. Notable collections that have included this coin: the Dr Frank Becker Collection (Spink 2023), the Cape Coral Collection (Heritage 2022), and various Noble Numismatics consignments across multiple decades.
- Mintage discrepancy. Sources vary slightly on the exact figure: 4,357 is widely cited per Becklake/Colnect; Spink noted 4,327 on the Becker lot. The 30-piece difference doesn't materially affect the coin's rarity assessment — both figures confirm a sub-5,000 census.
Sources
Nine Cited WorksWestern Cape Numismatic Society. Pierre H. Nortje, "The ZAR Coinage of 1892," December 2023.
Collectors Society. "My World Crown Affair · 19th Cent · Zuid-Afrikaansche Republiek 5 shillings."
Colnect. "5 Shillings (Double shaft wagon tongue)," KM#8.2.
Spink. Auction 23006 (Dr Frank Becker Collection), Lot 486, 28 September 2023.
Goldberg Auctions. February 2017 Long Beach (#96), Lot 3446; January 2015 Pre Long Beach (#84), Lot 4610.
Bonhams. "Z.A.R., Five Shillings, 1892," 25 March 2015, Lot 671.
CNG. Electronic Auction 221, Lot 562.
Noble Numismatics. World Silver & Bronze auctions.
Western Cape Numismatic Society. Pierre H. Nortje, "The ZAR Coinage of 1892, Part 3 — New Information Discovered," May 2025. Archival research in the National Archives of South Africa, Pretoria, by Derick Rabe.
1892 Silver Denominations (parent page · all six 1892 silver denominations in context) · Single Shaft Pond (the gold counterpart with the same design correction story) · Double Shaft Half Pond (the gold sibling in the error triad) · 1892 Proof Set (the Crown as one of three error coins among nine) · Berlin Mint Connection (Royal Prussian Mint context · Schultz biography) · People Behind the Coins (Otto Schultz) · Error Coin Encyclopedia (the OS controversy in detail) · ZAR Hub (Big Five context).