400-year-old coin most valuable ever sold in Europe

A large gold coin, made in 1609 for King Philip III of Spain, has broken a European record by becoming the most valuable coin ever sold.

Auctioned in Switzerland for 2,817,500 Swiss francs (about £2.65 million) the coin is extremely rare because only one of its kind exists.

Made entirely of gold, it weighs 339 grams, which is roughly the weight of a large chocolate bar, or a full drinks can.

The coin is called a Centen, meaning 100 escudos, which was an old form of Spanish money. It was made in the city of Segovia in central Spain.

Coins like this were never meant to be used in everyday shops. Instead, they were created to show the power and wealth of the king.

Alain Baron, the founder of the auction house, explained that: "It was truly a royal gift, a regal gift for other kings or queens.

"The next owner will in some way have the possibility to be equal to a king since it is a king who gave it to another king."

The coin disappeared for hundreds of years before reappearing in the United States around 1950. Since then, it has been owned by a few private collectors.

Buyers from the US, Europe and the Middle East were interested in it as a "trophy asset," the auction house said.

The previous European record was for a gold coin belonging to Ferdinand III (a king who ruled over parts of Europe), which sold for 1.95 million Swiss francs (£1.83m).

The world's most valuable coin ever sold at auction is the 1933 Double Eagle. A very rare American coin that fetched $18,872,250 (£14.3m) at auction in New York in June 2021.