# Two Pound Piece: George IV (obverse); St. George and the Dragon (reverse)

- By: Benedetto Pistrucci (Italian, 1784–1855)
- By: Francis Legatt Chantrey (British, 1781–1841)
- By: Jean Baptiste Merlen (French, 1769–1850)
- Date: 1823
- Medium: gold
- Classification: Coins
- Dimensions: Diameter: 4.5 cm (1 3/4 in.)
- Culture: England, George IV, 1820-1830
- Credit line: The Norweb Collection
- Museum: [Cleveland Museum of Art](https://clevelandart.org/art/1969.214)
- Rights: [Public domain (CC0)](https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/)
- Picture: https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1969.214/1969.214_web.jpg
- Who can see it: Teens profiles and older (museums give no ratings; placed by Invisible Network from the museum's own words)

During the reign of King George IV, two-pound pieces were struck for circulation in 1823 only. Pattern pieces appeared in 1824, 1825, and 1826. The king was so disgusted with the caricature of a portrait that Pistrucci placed on the first coins of the reign that the artist was ordered to model a new obverse from a bust by the sculptor Sir Francis Chantrey (1781–1841). Pistrucci refused; it was beneath his dignity to copy the work of another artist. The work was therefore carried out by J. B. Merlen, assistant engraver at the Royal Mint.