Obverse: identify the front

Vittorio Emanuele II faces left. VITTORIO EMANUELE II follows the rim, with 1863 below the neck. The date and full monarch’s name matter because a broadly similar portrait can occur on an earlier regional issue with a different reverse legend.

Reverse: identify the back

REGNO D’ITALIA surrounds a crowned shield, branches and L.20 below. Small mint and assay letters occur near the lower rim. Confirm the kingdom wording and numerical denomination before placing the coin in this entry.

History and purpose

PCGS’s Kingdom of Italy classification covers 1861–1878 and lists date/mint combinations for Turin, Milan and Rome. Earlier Sardinian gold is outside that Italian type classification. The common monetary standard provides a useful gold-content comparison with French and Swiss twenty-unit coins without erasing national identity.

How to identify this variant

Read REGNO D’ITALIA, L.20, the monarch and date together. Compare 21 mm diameter and the nominal standard mass, then inspect the small mint/assay letters. Do not use an earlier SARDINIA reverse or a later ruler as proof of this exact type.

Understanding its metal content

The nominal calculation is 6.45161 g × 0.900 = 5.806449 g fine gold. Divide by 31.1034768 g per troy ounce to obtain approximately 0.186682 troy oz. The remaining tenth is alloy, not additional gold. A quantity of three represents approximately 0.560045 troy oz at standard weight. The theoretical metal amount is separate from a collector premium or buyer offer; it is not a measured assay of your specimen.

Dates, varieties and composition changes

Record the actual letter combination rather than treating BN as the mint itself. A type’s endpoints do not prove every year was struck at every facility. Preserve small-letter and edge photographs if attribution is uncertain.

Melt value versus collector value

The date, mint, die details and preservation can distinguish coins sharing a common gold standard. Keep related Sardinian and later Italian pieces separately identified for appraisal. A reference photograph’s age or dark background is not evidence that another coin has the same grade or surface.

Authenticity and condition

Use the actual denomination, both faces, date, mint details, edge, mass and diameter together. A plausible portrait or matching gold color is insufficient. Check an intact specimen with a suitable scale and caliper, keeping measurements separate from the nominal calculator. Worn, clipped, mounted or suspicious pieces need individual examination. Do not clean a coin or damage its edge to test it. These photographs identify representative designs; they do not authenticate a customer coin or assign a grade.

Selling this coin

Group the same denomination and type together, and record quantities, dates, mint marks and any original holders. Supply readable photographs of both faces and a separate edge view when inscriptions or damage matter. Request an appraisal for the actual lot rather than treating the nominal gold total as a guaranteed payment. Keep ten-unit gold, silver coins and replicas out of this entry. The collection calculator can combine separately identified coins while retaining each composition.

Sources and calculation methodology

The calculator retains the five-decimal twenty-unit nominal mass in Article 2 of the original 1865 monetary convention, reproduced in the Swedish parliamentary report. This is historical specification evidence, not current legal or tax guidance and not a claim that an earlier coin was first issued under that convention. Design and issue dates are checked separately against issuer or coin-type references. Shorter catalog weights and the photographed specimen’s condition are not substituted for the nominal standard. Original photograph licenses and transformations are recorded separately. No approved live gold-price feed is configured, so dollar melt values remain unavailable.

Common questions

References

• Original monetary convention, 23 December 1865: Article 2 — weight twenty-unit gold 6.45161 g; fineness 900 thousandths; diameter 21 mm; original shared nominal standard, not current law (checked 2026-10-10)
• PCGS: Vittorio Emanuele II twenty-lire classification — identity; dates Kingdom of Italy 1861–1878; design classification; Turin T, Milan M and Rome R varieties (checked 2026-10-10)

Issue-year references

• PCGS: Vittorio Emanuele II twenty-lire dated issues

Content maintained by CashForCoins. Last substantive record update: 2026-10-10. Report a specification or attribution issue through our contact page.

Related coins

Napoleon III French Gold 20 Francs

Photo credits and rights on the linked coin profile.

France • 90% gold; 10% alloy metal

Issue years: 1853–1870

Fine gold: 0.186682 troy oz

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