A selection of some of the
better / more interesting coins SOLD through
HistoryInCoins.com
in 2025
Halfpennies
WSC-8019:
Choice 1558 Mary
Queen of Scots Hammered Silver Testoon. First period before marriage, 1542-58. Type IIIb
with the low-arched crown and no annulets below the M and the R, initial mark
Crown. Spink
5406. No muling
of the dates, which is unusual, and interestingly, clear evidence that the 155-
part of the date on the obverse was on the die with the final digit, in this
case an 8, being added later, and even some evidence that the same occurred on
the reverse as there is a cap between the first three and the final digits. Scottish coinage in general was a product of
miniscule mintage figures compared to south of the border with extant examples
disappearing even faster as a result of various currency recalls where coinage
would be taken in to go into the melting pot upon the death of every old
monarch to release silver for new monarch coinage. There was also a huge recall of coinage in
1707 as a result of the Act of Union: £142,180 face value of hammered Scottish
coinage and £96,856 face value of milled Scottish coinage was brought into the
Provenance:
Ex Libertas collection, purchased Oct 1980
for US $850
WSC-7822: 1559 Scottish Mary
Queen of Scots Hammered Billon Silver Nonsunt.
A twelve penny groat struck in the second period, 1558-60, under both
Mary and her husband, Francis. It was an
issue of half alloy (.5 fine) which was actually quite
high considering the Lions of the same date which were 23/24 alloy - basically
base metal. The obverse crowned heraldic
dolphin is facing left (it's my belief that left facing is the rarer of the
two) so this is Spink 5448. If you're
scratching your head over the derivation of the term "nonsunt",
look no further than the reverse legend.
A small hole at
WSC-9108: Excessively Rare
David II Scottish Medieval Hammered Silver Round Farthing.
First coinage, first issue of early 1330's. Spink 5086. More
recent ticket here. Obverse: +DAVID:DEI.GRACIA
and reverse: REX SCOTORVM. Berwick
mint (tentative attribution) with initial mark Cross Pattée. The
Provenance:
ex R.W. Kirton collection (an
excellent numismatic researcher who amassed a comprehensive collection of
Scottish coinage)
WMH-9102: Stephen Norman
Kings Hammered Silver Penny - Rare Mint.
Almer (actually Aethelmaer,
a solid Saxon name for a Norman moneyer!) of
Provenance:
ex
Michael Trenerry (1986 and 2023)
WMH-7939: Stephen Norman
Hammered Silver Rarer Mint Penny. Cross
WI-9077: Irish Henry
VII Hammered Silver Tudor Groat. A class 1, late portrait issue, circa 1496 - 1505.
Provenance:
ex
Spink
Old 1995 ticket
WTH-7883: 1567 Elizabeth 1st
Milled or Machine-Pressed Silver Sixpence with Excellent Provenance.
Initial mark lis, small
crude bust, Spink 2599. Borden
& Brown 37 (O1/R1) - type 7c. The
following, which I highlight at the top of the Elizabeth 1st page,
is fact: “85% of Mestrelle’s
meagre experimental machine-made coins were sixpences dated 1562. This leaves 15% for all the other
Screw-Pressed sixpences, shillings, groats, threepences, halfgroats, threefarthings and the gold coinage.” It doesn’t take a statistician to see that for
Spink to state that a 1567 milled 6d is commoner than a 1562 6d is beyond
ridiculous. (I don't tend to buy 1562
machine pressed sixpences as they are invariably overpriced). Queen Elizabeth 1st herself visited
both mints (Upper & Lower Houses) upon the occasion of the near completion
of the recoinage on
WMH-8128: Stephen Norman
Hammered Silver Penny. An exceptional coin.
Cross
WMH-7396: William II “Rufus”
Hammered Silver Norman Penny. Cross fleury
and piles issue (B.M.C. V) of 1098 – 1100 only. +ASCIL.ON.[L]I[N]CO.
WJC-9094:
Stuart
De Passe Token - James 1st with Charles 1st.
Circa 1625 - 1629/30. From a series of Medalets issued by Simon van de Passe
(1595-1647) depicting the kings and queens of
WCom-6439: 1651
Commonwealth Hammered Silver Shilling. A straight 51 obverse and
reverse but no stop after THE making this the rare E.S.C 984. SOLD
WJC-7503: 1604 James 1st
Hammered Silver Dated Sixpence. First Coinage, second bust,
initial mark Lis. Spink 2648. A common date but the rarer
first coinage type. Ex Wootton collection. SOLD
WG-9081: 1797 George
III Copper Cartwheel Penny BOX. At
40mm in height, this box is comprised of a cartwheel penny as base and another
for the lid, together with a copper tube for the body of the box imitating x10
more cartwheel pennies. The base coin is
fixed. The top pushes into / pulls out
of the copper tube in a most pleasing fashion.
Possibly a very early 1800's apprentice piece. If you're looking for something numismatic,
tactile, useful and quirky, look no further!
SOLD
WG-9082: 1797 George
III Copper Cartwheel Penny SMUGGLER'S BOX. At first glance, a standard 1797
George III cartwheel penny. Look closer
though and you'll see that this coin cleverly unscrews to reveal a hidden
cavity inside. Possibly a very early
1800's apprentice piece. Another story
I've heard is that these were used to hide a gold guinea inside so that, for
instance, if you were taking a horse & coach trip in Georgian times and
were held up by a highwayman, he would not really be interested in a paltry
penny. These things have always been
termed "Smuggler's Boxes" so clearly there was an element of smuggling
involved here, although what you could physically smuggle inside one of these
things back in the early 1800's is beyond me!
Crucially, the thread mechanism on this coin is in perfect working
order - virtually every other example I've previously had has been
problematic on the thread. A couple of
people have been asking me to source one of these pretty much since Covid - this is the first I've had in all that time! If you're looking for something numismatic,
tactile, useful and quirky, look no further!
SOLD
WG-9083: 1797 George
III Copper Cartwheel Twopence SMUGGLER'S BOX. At first glance, a standard huge
1797 George III cartwheel twopence. Look closer though and you'll see that this
coin cleverly unscrews to reveal a hidden cavity inside. Possibly a very early 1800's apprentice
piece. Another story I've heard is that
these were used to hide a gold guinea inside so that, for instance, if you were
taking a horse & coach trip in Georgian times and were held up by a
highwayman, he would not really be interested in a paltry penny. These things have always been termed
"Smuggler's Boxes" so clearly there was an element of smuggling
involved here, although what you could physically smuggle inside one of these
things back in the early 1800's, even in a coin of this size, is beyond
me! Crucially, the thread mechanism on
this coin is in perfect working order - virtually every other example
I've previously had has been problematic on the thread. Further, this is a very different method of manufacture
to examples I've previously seen - the thread is set much further into the coin
resulting in a very sturdy design indeed.
A couple of people have been asking me to source one of these pretty
much since Covid - this is the first I've had in all that
time! If you're looking for something
numismatic, tactile, useful and quirky, look no further! SOLD
WSC-9044: John Baliol
Scottish Hammered Silver Long Cross & Stars Penny. Second coinage, smooth surface issue, circa 1292-6. Berwick mint. Obv: +IOhANNES DEI
GRA, bust left. Rev: +REX SCOTORVM, long
cross with x4 mullets or stars of six points in
angles. Spink 5071.
John Baliol was “chosen” out of thirteen competitors
for the Scottish throne upon the death of Alexander III. The English king, Edward I, was the
arbitrator. John Baliol’s
four year reign ended in 1296 with his abdication when Berwick,
Provenance:
ex Mike Vosper
WI-9078: John (as Lord)
Irish Medieval Hammered Silver Halfpenny.
Listed in reference books as pennies but circulated at halfpence (the
halfpennies duly circulated as farthings).
Second DOM[inus]
coinage with the rarer obverse legend ending DOOM, c.1185/1190 and no later
than 1208/9.
Provenance:
ex
Spink
ex
Hartland collection of English coins
ex
WTH-7884: 1568/7 Elizabeth
1st Milled or Machine-Pressed Silver Sixpence with Excellent Provenance.
Initial mark lis, small
crude bust, Spink 2599. Borden
& Brown 40 (O2/R1) - type 7c, this exact coin cited and illustrated. The following, which I highlight at the top
of the Elizabeth 1st page, is fact:
“85% of Mestrelle’s meagre experimental machine-made coins were
sixpences dated 1562. This leaves 15%
for all the other Screw-Pressed sixpences, shillings, groats, threepences,
halfgroats, threefarthings and the gold coinage.” It doesn’t take a statistician to see that
for Spink to state that a 1568/7 milled 6d is commoner than a 1562 6d is beyond
ridiculous. (I don't tend to buy 1562
machine pressed sixpences as they are invariably overpriced). Queen Elizabeth 1st herself
visited both mints (Upper & Lower Houses) upon the occasion of the near
completion of the recoinage on
WSC-9087: 1567 Mary
Queen of Scots Large Hammered Silver Ryal. Second widowhood,
struck Edinburgh,
Spink 5429.
Old tickets here.
Counterstamped due to revaluation (30s to a hefty 36s, 9d) in 1578 - see
page 76 of Spink. It is interesting to
note that 1567 was a year that both Mary and James VI issued coinage
although it should be noted that the Mary date was but a fraction of the James
VI date in terms of output. About VF. A most desirable coin.
SOLD
Provenance:
ex
Spink, 1980's (May Sinclair tickets)
WTH-9091: Elizabeth
1st Hammered Silver Tudor Shilling. Sixth issue,
initial mark Woolpack (1594-6), Spink 2577. An interesting and rarer
variety with the obverse legend reading ELZAB. Excellent grade - just look
at the state of most extant Elizabethan coinage from late in the issue. The Spink plate coin - presumably the best
known example - is only marginally better.
Beautifully toned, high grade and rare thus. SOLD
Provenance:
ex
Tim Owen (older colour ticket)
WI-8174: 1690 Irish James
II Emergency Pewter Money Halfpenny.
Issued as part of the Gun Money Civil War coinage, but
very much on the tail-end when the supply of “latten” or scrap base metal was
very in dire shortage. Things
were getting so bad that a warrant was issued for the coining of two guns
(presumably obsolete ones) from
WAu-9023:
Edward VI Tudor
Hammered Gold Half Sovereign. Although struck within the early period of
Edward's reign, they all bear the name AND portrait of his father, Henry
VIII. A youthful portrayal of Henry - a
strange choice of depiction, bearing in mind Henry was not only elderly but
also dead at this point! - with sceptre. Initial mark Arrow. Lozenge stops on the obverse; broken
quatrefoils on the reverse. Spink 2391,
Schneider 660, North 1865. Always a
problematic issue, the dies poor and the end product rarely, if ever, struck up
properly. See here for weight and tickets. This coin above average for
issue. SOLD
Provenance
Ex Michael Trenerry
WAu-7940: Henry VII Hammered
Tudor Gold Angel. Type IV, rarer Greyhound
Head initial mark (1502-4), Spink 2185.
This is the first Greyhound Head angel I have had. Very much the new dies type - angel with both
feet on the dragon as opposed to the old type with just one foot. A nice, presentable rarer initial mark hammered
gold angel, ex mount, for well under £2,000 (possibly even cheaper if you take
up the Coin News advert challenge?!)
Good look in finding any other Angel, for any monarch, for sale at under
£2K these days. SOLD
WTH-7603: Philip & Mary
Hammered Silver Billon Penny. P.Z.M. etc,
WMH-8104: Henry IV / V
Hammered Silver Medieval SCOWLING BUST Groat.
Light coinage,
Provenance:
ex D. Mangaki collection...
Purchased
from Seaby 1956
ex Margaret Delmé Radcliffe
collection...
Dispersed Glendining's Action (1985)
Ex
Dispersed DN W Action
(2019)
Ex Mike Vosper (2019 -
£1,250 ticket price)
Ex Mike Hallam
collection
WRS-8999: Roman
Silver Legionary Denarius: Legion II - Extraordinary Provenance. Roman Imperatorial
coinage, post Second Triumvirate, Mark Antony. Struck Autumn 32 to
Spring 31 BC. RSC 27, Sear 349. Legionary denarii is the modern name for a
series of Roman silver denarius coins issued by Mark Antony
in the eastern Med
iterranean
during the last war of the
Provenance:
ex
Helmingham Hoard of 2019WMH-8059: An Excellent Henry V Long Cross
Hammered Silver Penny. Initial mark Pierced Cross,
WSC-9031:
Charles 1st
Scottish Hammered Silver Twelve Shillings - A Hugely Significant Coin. Third coinage, 1637-42, Type IV
Falconer issue, the rarest (and final) Type IV issue with the bust wholly
within the inner circle. Spink 5563. So, two things:
1)
This coin has been centrally pierced as part of the 1696 Great Re-coinage,
largely overseen by Sir Isaac Newton at the mint. Hammered coinage in
a. Due to the mint’s
promise of a like-for-like value replacement, regardless of condition, many
enterprising individuals, before submitting for exchange, clipped their
hammered coinage further still, retaining the silver shavings to be utilised
for effectively what was free money later on.
b. As a direct
result of this extra clipping, together with the high cost of minting the new
milled coinage, the government lost a great deal of money – nearly £3
million.
c. The timing was
appalling – the new milled money was not ready in time for an exchange. Riots threatened and there was great public
unrest until the government bridged the period by issuing paper notes.
d. The infamous Window
Tax, of which we’re all still cognisant of today, was introduced specifically
to pay for this near £3 million financial black hole. There have been some bad government taxes
over the years, but a window tax?!
Bearing in mind there were not actually that many hammered coins that
passed the grade in 1696 (the process was actually 1696-99), together with the
fact that post 1699, whenever a pierced hammered coin passed through the hands
of officialdom, it would inevitably be withdrawn, it’s perhaps easy to see why
these coins are rare. You really don’t
see than many of them. Georgian and
Victorian gentlemen collectors would not be interested in pierced coins (these
were the people who mutilated the Cromwell crowns by smoothing over the
infamous die flaw because they couldn’t live with them as they were!!), which
is another reason why these extremely interesting coins are so rare.
2) The 1696 Great Re-coinage of 1696 was absolutely an
English move and yet this coin is very much Scottish! What would have happened was that this coin
would have been traded down from
I have never seen or even heard of a Scottish coin connected with the
1696 Great Re-coinage before - the Irish
Charles 1st Blacksmith halfcrown I put up on the website a few years back was
centrally pierced not because of 1696 but simply to denote it wasn't legal
currency. However, there is a single
Scottish reference I've managed to source, and it is just a single reference in
amongst all the English extant examples: The Punched Hammered Coinage of
1696 (Galata 2019) by Garry Charman
lists a Scottish Charles 1st twelve shilling piece, centrally pierced, as a
result of the Great Recoinage, and would you believe it, the coin was also the
rarer type IV, Spink 5563! Not the same
coin though. A very
rare coin indeed. SOLD
WTH-9061:
1551 Edward VI Tudor Hammered FINE SILVER Halfcrown.
Walking horse with plume, initial mark y, Spink 2479. Tower (
WI-9060:
Rarer Edward VI Irish Tudor Hammered Silver Groat or
Sixpence. Posthumous (Henry VIII) old
head coinage, 1547 - 1550. CIVI
TAS DVB LINIE -
WI-7661: 1690 (August)
James II Irish Gun Money Half Crown. Large-sized halfcrown. Spink 6579b. After fleeing from England to
France in 1688 – an effective abdication from the English throne – James II
landed in Ireland March 1689 in order to promote his Catholic cause, something
we are perhaps still living with today?!
He had insufficient funds to prosecute this war so the plan was to raise
money by issuing base metal coinage in place of what would previously have been
silver issues. This was a less subtle
example of the Quantitative Easing that we all witnessed a few years ago. If today’s money had still been based on the
value of the coin in your hand being worth its face value in precious metal,
then the Chancellor in 2009 would perhaps have done something very
similar! This coinage was set up with an
intention for them to be exchanged for sterling coinage once the dust had
settled. This never happened. The metal for these coins came from old
cannon, bells and various other scrap metals that were termed “Gun Money”. SOLD
WI-9066: 1690 Irish Gun
Money Full Crown. James II emergency Civil
War coinage of 1689-91. Spink 6578.
Overstruck on the large Gun Money halfcrowns as by 1690, these were
obsolete; replaced by the small size halfcrowns. The obverse of the Gun Money crown (and it is
just the crowns) has similarities to the earlier Charles 1st
halfcrowns and crowns, which I’m sure was far from accidental. It won’t have escaped readers’ attention that
Gun Money coinage is currently riding high in terms of popularity. After fleeing from England to France in 1688
– an effective abdication from the English throne – James II landed in Ireland
March 1689 in order to promote his Catholic cause, something we are perhaps
still living with today?! He had
insufficient funds to prosecute this war so the plan was to raise money by
issuing base metal coinage in place of what would previously have been silver
issues. This was a less subtle example
of the Quantitative Easing that we all witnessed a few years ago. This coinage was set up with an intention for
them to be exchanged for sterling coinage once the dust had settled. This never happened. The metal for these coins came from old
cannon, bells and various other scrap metals that were termed “Gun Money”. SOLD
WTH-7601: 1589 Elizabeth 1st
Jetton – The Defeat of the Spanish Armada.
This event is iconic in the annals of Tudor history. Obviously this happened in 1588 but design,
production and distribution takes time.
MI 153/128, Eimer 63, Van Loom 388/2.
Well toned and perhaps somewhat harshly graded at GVF. Ex
WTH-8074: Edward VI Base Shilling
Counterstamped with an Elizabeth 1st Portcullis Revaluation Mark.
An Edward VI base shilling from the Third Period
(1551), clear initial mark Lion, the final date letter of the Roman alphabet
clearly shown as L, so MDL or 1550.
Counterstamped between 1oth October 1560 and
WTH-7600: 1599/8 Elizabeth
1st Hammered Silver Sixpence. Initial mark Anchor over
Key, Sixth issue, Spink 2578B. 1599
as a date represents a frequency of 0.2% for the 2,716 recorded single finds of
Elizabeth 1st coins and 0.1% for all 5,588 recorded Elizabeth 1st hoard
coins. *** 1599 is the third rarest of all forty two dates
*** There was an economic
depression during the final years of the sixteenth century, a factor hugely
relevant in the rarity of this coin.
This led to a situation where there was an oversupply of dies, resulting
in not only date alterations (we see 1599/8/6, 99/8 [this coin] and 99/6) but
also initial mark changes, in this case it was Anchor for 1599 overstruck on
Key for 98. This scenario only started
in 1598 as prior to that date, we see very little, if any overdating
– even 1597 was a straight date. More
interesting still, this coin is the rarer AN over KY in ANG error. Ex Ewerby Hoard. Not a particularly pleasing coin but
nevertheless hugely interesting, very rare and benefiting from coming from that
well known, recent hoard – and by the way, this large hoard was very much made
up of worn coins from circulation with apparently zero consideration given for
any part of it to be “nice coins” – these were the coins available to the
individual who put that hoard together at that time. This 1599 is fairly representative across the
board in terms of grade, showing us that the general coinage in circulation in
the 1640’s – the given date of this hoard – was poor. It’s frustrating when people demand high
grade, choice sixpences and complain that all see are “battered, low grade”
examples. The Chris Comber and Walter
Wilkinson Elizabeth 1st collections had their fair share of coins
looking like this, even after many decades of collecting and upgrading. A rare coin. SOLD
WTH-7708: 1589 Elizabeth 1st
Hammered Silver Tudor Sixpence. Sixth issue, initial mark
Crescent, Spink 2578A. 1589 as a
date represents a frequency of 0.5% for the 2,716 recorded single finds of
Elizabeth 1st coins and 0.5% for all 5,588 recorded Elizabeth 1st hoard
coins. 1589 is the seventh rarest of all forty two dates. Very nice grade for such a
late issue. SOLD
WTH-8030: 1598 Elizabeth 1st
Hammered Silver Sixpence. Initial mark Anchor, Sixth
issue, Spink 2578B. 1598 as a
date represents a frequency of 0.1% for the 2,716 recorded single finds of
Elizabeth 1st coins and 0.1% for all 5,588 recorded Elizabeth 1st hoard
coins. *** 1598 is the second rarest of all forty two dates
*** There was an economic
depression during the final years of the sixteenth century, a factor hugely
relevant in the rarity of this coin.
This led to a situation where there was an oversupply of dies. 1598 exists only as a straight 1598 but the
dies were used in subsequent years because so few coins were struck in 1598
that the existing dies were still fresh as a daisy! We see later 1599/8/6 and 1599/8 coins to
illustrate this. The more astute among
you may well be wondering how a 1598 coin can have an anchor as an initial mark
when anchor was
WTH-8992: 1571/0
Elizabeth 1st MILLED or MACHINE PRESSED Silver Sixpence. Large, crude bust with ear showing,
initial mark Castle over Lis, Spink 2600. The rarest date in the
"milled" series by a country mile. Queen Elizabeth 1st herself
visited both mints (Upper & Lower Houses) upon the occasion of the near
completion of the recoinage on
Provenance:
Ex Seaby
(1959)
Ex R. Carlyon-Britton
collection (1971)
Ex B.R. Noble collection, dispersed
through...
Glendining's Auction, 11-12 December 1975, lot 582
Ex
Ex Chris Comber collection, sold 1986
to...
Ex Walter Wilkinson collection dispersed
through...
DNW Auction 148,
WTH-8994: 1600/159-
Elizabeth 1st Hammered Silver Sixpence. Sixth issue, initial mark 0, bust
6B - Spink 2578B. For the vast bulk of
Elizabethan coinage, little or no foresight had been used regarding dates and
initial marks, resulting in glaring overdates when the old dies were used again
(recycled) in subsequent years, for example the famous 1578/7/6. There are many others. The penny dropped at the mint, eventually,
that perhaps sinking dies but omitting initial marks and with only partial
dates (those to be added when the dies were brought into use), might be a good
idea. Amusingly, this practice was
adopted in, wait for it, 1599 - the most inappropriate time possible because
the following year was 1600 with three digits changing as opposed to usually
one and rarely two! Rather than throw
away the prepared 159- "future-proof" dies, they decided to alter the
middle two digits from -59- to -60-. The
first digit (thankfully!) didn't need changing and all they had to do was add the 0 to the end of the date, as well as add the initial
mark in the gap provided. Thus we have
1600 over 159- coins. Interestingly,
these 159- dies were also used in 1601 but even after adding the final digit
and changing the middle two, they discovered that the first and last digits
were so far apart in time that they were actually from different punches and so
different! Demand for English coin was
much in decline at this period so these were tiny mintages: 1600 as a date
represents a frequency of 0.4% for the 2,716 recorded single finds of Elizabeth
1st coins and 0.1% for all 5,588 recorded Elizabeth 1st hoard coins. 1600 is the fifth rarest of all forty two dates. I have to say that I don't see 1600 as being as
abundant as that, and I'm far from the only person saying that. A rare coin indeed. SOLD
WTH-8118: Unrecorded 1588 -
final 8 over sideways 8 Elizabeth 1st Hammered Silver Tudor
Sixpence.
Sixth issue, initial
mark Crescent, Spink 2578A. Note
the two 8's are low down, indicating both final digits were added to a finished
15-- die. In some instances, only the
final 8 has been added to a 158- die.
This was a time of austerity where relatively few coins were struck; the
thought being that these dies could be used over several years without
the need to overdate. However, much more
important is the final 8, it being overstruck over a sideways 8. Messrs. Brown, Comber & Wilkinson, the
undisputed leading experts on all things numismatically linked to Elizabeth
1st, in their research paper (published 2006, updated 2012), state that there
is but a single 1588 variety recorded - of all the other dates in this series
(1561 - 1602), 1597 and 1588 are the only dates to have a single type,
everything else having multiple dates, overdates, various errors etc, etc. And yet this coin is ex Chris Comber
collection - clearly an addition to his collection (all three of them
were actively adding to their collection right up until the end) post the 2012
update to their research. Completely unrecorded and
unique at this point in time. Interestingly,
the same employee at the mint who thought a sideways 8 was a good idea to add
to a 15-- die was probably still employed in 1589 when he again thought a
sideways 9 was an equally good and acceptable idea! 1580 also has an 8 over a sideways 8. After 1589, no more errors of this nature are
recorded thus we can assume that he was either cured of his sideways view on things
or moved out! 1588 as a date
represents a frequency of 0.2% for the 2,716 recorded single finds of Elizabeth
1st coins and 0.2% for all 5,588 recorded Elizabeth 1st hoard coins. 1588 is the fourth rarest of all forty two dates. The famous Spanish Armada date and although
only 4th rarest in the “league table”, this date is arguably the
most sought after of all dates. A very important coin.
SOLD
WMH-7873: Edward III
Medieval Hammered Silver Groat - a Rare Error.
Pre-Treaty, series C, 1351-52,
WTH-8160: Edward VI Hammered Billon
Silver Shilling. Second (debased) issue,
January 1549 to April 1550. Bust 5, initial mark y.
Dated 1550 so a rarer late dies coin. Tower (
Provenance:
ex Martin Hewitt, his tickets (2005, sold for £250)
ex Spink (their ticket)
WTH-6894:
Henry VII
Hammered Silver Tudor Groat. Type IIIc
with IIIb bust. Spink 2199.
WCA-5416: 1694 William & Mary Silver Proof Farthing. Plain edge. Heavier than usual and with
some wear so was obviously in circulation as currency. Contemporary planchets fault on reverse at
WMH-8149: Richard II Medieval Hammered Silver Groat. Type II
(retrograde Z preceding FRANC),
WTH-8123: High Grade 1602
Elizabeth 1st Hammered Silver Sixpence.
Seventh issue, initial mark 2 – the last ever date in the lengthy
Elizabeth 1st sixpence series.
Interestingly, the obverse initial mark 2 is overstruck on an earlier
initial mark 1. Spink
2585. 1602 as a date represents a
frequency of 1.9% for the 2,716 recorded single finds of Elizabeth 1st coins
and 2.1% for all 5,588 recorded Elizabeth 1st hoard coins. Outstanding grade for a
coin so late in the series. Ex Chris Comber collection.
SOLD
WAu-9018:
Celtic Iron Age
Full Gold Stater - Tasciovanus. Catulvellauni tribe, 25 BC - AD 10 Hidden faces type with
the obverse being Hidden Faces - crossed wreaths, one curved, back-to-back,
crescents at the centre with faces in the angles. The reverse has a horse in flight, right, a bucranium and a solar device above. TASCIAVAN is supposed to be above nut it
rarely is. Hook-like devices are found
below the horse but this coin has an extra object below, described as a
"bunch of grapes" on the ticket.
See here for
weight. Again, Tasciovanus
appears to have had ties with
WAu-7996:
Rare Celtic Gold
Broad Flan Type Quarter Stater. Ambiani tribe - imported from
Ex J.Follws collection
Ex Chris Rudd (sold for £500 back in the day)
Ex Northern collection
WTH-7955: Elizabeth 1st
Hammered Silver UNDATED Sixpence. Initial mark Lion, 1567, Third
& Fourth issues, Spink 2562A.
Comber, Wilkinson & Brown (2006, updated 2012) in their seminal
publication on Elizabethan coinage list only three examples recorded, one of
which is held by the
WTH-7959: 1574 Elizabeth 1st
Hammered Silver Sixpence. Initial mark obverse Eglantine; reverse
Eglantine over Acorn. One of the
clearest initial mark counterstamps you're ever likely to see. Bust 5A, Third & Fourth issues, Spink
2563. What is of great interest here is
the obverse initial mark, it being originally an Acorn reverse die (
WTH-7470: 1601
Elizabeth 1st Hammered Silver Sixpence. Seventh Issue,
initial mark 1, Spink 2585.
1601 as a date represents a frequency of 0.6% for the 2,716 recorded
single finds of Elizabeth 1st coins and 0.7% for all 5,588 recorded Elizabeth
1st hoard coins. 1601 is the tenth rarest of all
forty two dates. These
later date coin, and you don’t get much later than this, other than the
obvious, were nearly always poorly struck, often using dies of a lesser
standard compared to the start of the reign.
This coin is stunning, easily being the best grade example I’ve ever
had, or probably seen. If it wasn’t for
the damage, it would be a four figure coin.
SOLD
WTH-7956: 1587/6/5 Elizabeth
1st Hammered Silver Sixpence. Initial mark Crescent, Bust
5B, Sixth issue, Spink 2578. This
is the much rarer 7 over 6 over 5 overdate (there is
evidence of a high 5's lower crescent), this being a recorded overdate, along
with the 1587/6. Both overdates are
equally rare with the straight 87 being most commonly encountered. 1587 as a date represents a frequency of 0.9%
for the 2,716 recorded single finds of Elizabeth 1st coins and 1.0% for all
5,588 recorded Elizabeth 1st hoard coins.
1587 is the
twelfth rarest of all forty two dates, but do please bear in
mind that 12th rarest is for a straight, non overdate 1587. Ex Lingford
collection, purchased from Lingford by
WTH-7957: 1577/6 Elizabeth
1st Hammered Silver Sixpence. Initial mark Eglantine,
Bust 5A, Third & Fourth issues, Spink 2563. The overdate couldn't be clearer. It may be of interest to read that this is
such a rare date that there are only these 1577/6 overdates recorded, ie there
are literally no straight 1577 coins, meaning that all 1577 sixpence reverse
dies were recycled from earlier years. 1577
as a date represents a frequency of 0.4% for the 2,716 recorded single finds of
Elizabeth 1st coins and 0.4% for all 5,588 recorded Elizabeth 1st hoard
coins. 1577 is the sixth rarest of all forty two dates. Nice grade and attractively toned thus a very
rare coin. Ex Chris
Comber collection. SOLD
WTH-7958: 1575 Elizabeth 1st
Hammered Silver Sixpence. Initial mark obverse Eglantine over Ermine;
reverse Eglantine. Bust 5A, Third &
Fourth issues, Spink 2563. There is no
evidence of this date being 1575/2 as suggested in one of the unidentified
tickets and indeed, that combination currently does not exist as a recorded
overdate. What is of great interest is
the obverse initial mark, it being originally an Ermine die (
WSax-7974: Edward the
Confessor Hammered Silver Saxon Penny. Pointed helmet type, B.M.C.
VII, c.1053-6 only. +STIRCOL
ON EOFER -
WTH-7977: Philip and Mary
Hammered Silver Tudor Groat. Initial mark Lis, 1554-58.
Spink 2508.
Mary was the only child of Henry VIII (her mother was Catherine of
Aragon) to survive to adulthood. Mary quickly
and efficiently disposed of Lady Jane Gray – proclaimed Queen when Mary’s
younger brother Edward VI, died at age 9 – by beheading her, a process not
unfamiliar to her, being the daughter of Henry VIII!! Mary’s marriage to Philip of Spain was entirely
political – his close aid once wrote: "The marriage was concluded for no
fleshly consideration!" Ex Lingford (December 1948) collection,
ex Chris Comber collection. SOLD
WI-7735: 1543 Henry
VIII Irish Hammered Silver Harp Groat. Third Harp
issue, 1543 only. 0.833 silver
fineness, which interestingly, in view of Henry VIII’s
penchant for progressively reducing the silver content of his coinage
throughout the reign, is actually a HIGHER silver content compared to the Second
Harp issue of 1540-42. Rest assured
though, the fourth issue was 0.666, the fifth 0.500 and the sixth 0.250. Initial mark Tudor Rose. Spink 6481. A very nice grade coin indeed, possibly
edging the Spink plate coin. SOLD
WTH-7802: 1562 Elizabeth 1st
Machine Screw-Press Silver Threepence.
Tall bust with no ear showing, initial mark Star, medium
rose, Spink 2603. A
much rarer denomination with only x4 different dates. I again refer the reader to the factual
statement at the top of the Elizabeth 1st page, highlighted in
yellow, which will comprehensively illustrate just how rare this denomination
is. Spink sold a
similar example some time ago for £1,140 after commissions. It should be noted that in that auction,
Spink misidentified the coin by attributing it as Spink 2604. It was Spink 2603. Probably only the 3rd threepence I have ever had.
SOLD
WTH-7804: 1580 Elizabeth 1st
Hammered Silver Tudor Sixpence Fifth issue, initial mark Latin or Long
Cross, which was in use 1st June 1580 to 31st December
1581 so much more prevalent of 1581 coins.
Further, there are overdates recorded – 1580/79, of which this coin is
decidedly not – so it’s a fair assumption to date this coin to the latter
months of the second half of 1580.
Interestingly, no 1580 dies were recycled post this date. Likely to have been part of a hoard at some
point as the coin has been historically cleaned and the grade is
outstanding. Note the reverse, which as
good as you’ll ever see on one of these.
The coin is probably not far off “as struck” with the obverse being a
tad under-struck, coupled with some slight double striking. Even taking grade out of the equation, this
is a particularly well made specimen, especially as 1580 is at the point where
quality of the dies and the actual end product started to fall off the
cliff! There is a scratch to the neck
which could be as a result of recovery from the ground, or perhaps a test
scratch to ascertain authenticity because the coin was probably a stand-out
example when it hit the streets. Just
speculation, though. 1580 as a date
represents a frequency of 3.7% for the 2,716 recorded single finds of Elizabeth
1st coins and 4.1% for all 5,588 recorded Elizabeth 1st hoard coins. Spink 2572. A very desirable coin. SOLD
WCom-7854: 1649 Commonwealth Hammered
Silver Shilling. Initial mark Sun,
struck
WSC-7744:
1625 Charles 1st
Scottish Hammered Silver Six Shillings.
First coinage, first date in series, Spink 5543. This is an excessively rare issue – Charles’
Scottish coronation didn’t happen until 1633 and no new dies were produced
until then. Dies of James VI were
altered, under an official directive, and coinage was issued as Charles 1st
using the old, modified dies
This resulted in the Twelve Shilling and Six Shilling coins
literally having a bust of James VI on the front with just a quick name change
to the legend and a tweak or two to the beard.
This Charles 1st Six Shilling issue, along with the James VI
Six Shilling issue, often goes well under the radar with many people think
these coins are simply English dated sixpences.
I refer the reader to the Scottish James VI section of this website for
extra information. You might be thinking
that this isn’t much of a coin to look at and just looking at it, you’d be
correct. However, nice grade examples do
not turn up simply because this issue was generally poorly struck using
modified, often worn-out dies. The Spink
plate coin is a £5,000+ coin. This is
one of the rarest Charles 1st Scottish silver coin issues, if not
the rarest. I’d be surprised if this
coin didn’t attract a buyer very quickly.
SOLD
WAu-7765:
1710 Queen Anne
Full Gold Guinea. Post Scottish union, third draped bust, Spink 3574. 8.36g. It won’t have escaped your notice that with
Queen Anne gold coinage in particular, when they do come up, they are almost
always HALF guineas. It really is hard
work finding full guineas. Very light ex
mounting marks at 11, 12 and
WSC-9059: James VI Scottish
Hammered Silver Eightpenny Groat. Coinage of 1583-90, being before James VI
took on the English throne after the death of Elizabeth 1st in
1604.
WAu-7999: Extremely Rare Celtic
Unrecorded Quarter Stater.
Ex Chris Rudd (sold for
£650 back in the day)
Ex Northern collection
WMH-9037: Edward V or Richard III
Hammered Silver Medieval Groat. Type
2a, reading EDWARD DI GRA REX ANGL Z FRANC.
Provenance:
ex Spink (sold August 2014 for £3,010)
ex Frank Limouze collection (dispersed 2024)
WMH-7711:
William 1st
Hammered Silver Norman Penny. B.M.C.
1, Profile left, cross fleury
issue of 1066-68. +BRIHTNAR ON PIN – Britmar of
WI-9034: Excellent Edward VI Irish Tudor Hammered Silver Groat or
Sixpence. Posthumous (Henry VIII) old
head coinage, 1547 - 1550. CIVI
TAS DVB LINIE -
Provenance
Ex Tim
Owen
WTH-9028: 1586 Medal Beseeching
Help From Elizabeth 1st. A dated
Jetton or Medalet from the
WI-9050: Henry VIII with Anne
Boleyn Hammered Silver Irish Groat. Issued in commemoration of Henry’s marriage to Anne Boleyn, the
second and probably most famous of his six wives. Spink 6472. The rarer First (1st) Harp Issue, 1534-40 and
the rarest of the three wives mentioned on silver coinage, irrespective as to
what Spink claim. Dated
to 1534-5, in commemoration of a marriage that lasted just three years,
produced the future Queen Elizabeth 1st but ultimately ended in Anne losing her
head, quite literally, because she could not produce a male heir. This issue is at 0.842
silver fineness with later issues going the same way as that of the
English silver coinage under Henry, ie downhill. This is only the third Anne Boleyn groat
I've had, the first I remember selling within minutes of it being listed. Sold with an old
(unidentified) ticket. A rare coin and in exceptional grade for issue. SOLD
WI-7266:
Irish Henry
VIII Hammered Silver Groat. Issued in commemoration of Henry’s marriage to Jane Seymour. Spink 6473. The rarer First (1st) Harp Issue, 1534-40 but this coin dated 1536-7 in commemoration of
Henry’s marriage. Subsequent wives to
see their names (initials) in lights, or specifically on Harp groats, were Anne
Boleyn and Catherine Howard. Anne of Cleves seems to have been overlooked by Henry and by the
time of Catherine Parr, he seemed to have realised that perhaps the coinage
couldn’t keep up with his marriages.
This issue is at 0.842 silver fineness with
later issues going the same way as that of the English silver coinage, ie
downhill. See here for old tickets
– ex Spink, ex Bosworth. Rare. SOLD
WI-7575:
Rare Type 1
1722 George 1st Irish William Wood’s Copper Halfpenny. Slabbed
under NGC and graded by them as AU 50, meaning about Uncirculated. Spink 6600. Extra images here and here. Rare in this grade, rarer
still being this first issue. Incidentally,
when you visit the NGC page for this coin, it states that the current market
value, something it helpfully does for all NGC slabbed coins, is £658, although
bizarrely, EF grade in Spink 2020 is £1,200 in EF and NGC seem to think this
coin is a grade above EF?! Contemporary
planchet faults at
WI-8101: 1690 Irish Gun Money Full
Crown. James II
emergency Civil War coinage of 1689-91.
Spink 6578.
Overstruck on the large Gun Money halfcrowns because
by 1690 these were obsolete; replaced by the small size halfcrowns. Much original halfcrown detail still evident
on the reverse, which is what sets this coin above nearly all others - I don't recall ever having seen the
original host date of 1689 being not only so visible but literally next to the
new date of 1690 before! The
obverse of the Gun Money crown (and it is just the crowns) has similarities to
the earlier Charles 1st halfcrowns and crowns, which I’m sure was
far from accidental. It won’t have
escaped readers’ attention that Gun Money coinage is currently riding high in
terms of popularity. After fleeing from
England to France in 1688 – an effective abdication from the English throne –
James II landed in Ireland March 1689 in order to promote his Catholic cause,
something we are perhaps still living with today?! He had insufficient funds to prosecute this
war so the plan was to raise money by issuing base metal coinage in place of
what would previously have been silver issues.
This was a less subtle example of the Quantitative Easing that we all
witnessed a few years ago. This coinage
was set up with an intention for them to be exchanged for sterling coinage once
the dust had settled. This never
happened. The metal for these coins came
from old cannon, bells and various other scrap metals that were termed “Gun
Money”. Although not looking high grade,
it actually is - it's the soft strike resulting in the halfcrown detail being
visible which accounts for this. A very good and desirable coin indeed. SOLD
WSC-9051: 1694
Scottish William & Mary Silver Five Shillings. Conjoined
heads to the left, WM monogram on the reverse. Spink 5665 but the much rarer variation where the second V in GVLIELMVS is
an inverted A. I have
never seen this variety before although Spink do list it. The exact mintage of this date and denomination was just 3,496 between
5th Jan to
WCom-9048:
1653 Oliver Cromwell Silver
Medal. A cast medium sized silver
medal by T. Simon to commemorate the elevation of Cromwell to the position of
Lord Protectorate on
Provenance:
Ex "Numismata
Cromwelliana", the property of a gentleman
WAu-9025: Charles 1st Hammered
Gold SCOTTISH Eighth Unit. Third coinage, 1637-42, Briot issue,
right at the start of this coinage.
Spink 5538.
An EF grade coin, far surpassing the plate coin Spink put up, with all
the vast resources at their fingertips.
Some interesting political graffiti lightly behind the king's head
("6" - obviously someone back in the day making a point as to the
Scottish heritage of both the coin and the king) which is barely discernable
and would polish out if desired. An outstanding coin with equally impressive provenance. See here for all the old
tickets and here
for weight. An exciting and very rare
Scottish hammered gold offering. SOLD
Provenance
Ex Mark Rasmusson (2013),
sold to
Ex Maurice Bull collection,
dispersed to
Ex Noonans
(Feb 2023 where it sold for £4,128 including buyer's commission)
WAu-8088:
Charles II
Restoration Period Hammered Gold Crown.
First issue, initial mark Crown, circa very early in the 1660-62
hammered period. Obverse 3, reverse 3 dies. Spink 3303, North 2757, Schneider 389, Bull 114 (plate coin). Pierced and plugged (immediately to the left
of the obverse initial mark / around the letter R of the reverse – die rotation
10h). I bought this as a nEF, unplugged coin because even though I’d looked closely,
I did not spot the plug. In honesty, I still
can’t place it with any high degree of certainty as it’s a top rate job. If the paperwork (which came to me after I’d
bought the coin) stating the presence of the plug were to become disassociated
from this coin, I doubt anyone would ever notice – the workmanship is that
good. This extremely late hammered
coinage period of 1660-62, even though it spanned three issues, was very much
treading water and just really getting anything out there that would reassure
the public of the Restoration of the monarchy and the demise of the
Commonwealth. The quality of coinage in
general was not good and did deteriorate through the issues – you only have to
look at the hammered halfcrown issues to see that. Everyone at the mint was aware that hammered
coinage was dead in the water and that milled coinage was coming (indeed, Blondeau was getting everything together, ready for
production of his new milled coinage, literally as this coin was being minted)
so the dies were mediocre at best, as was the actual execution of the
coinage. And yet look at the state of
this coin, especially the obverse! What
a tremendous coin! Something else to
bear in mind: Blondeau needed all the silver and gold
he could get his hands on for the onset of milled coinage, and the country was
still teetering on bankruptcy after the Commonwealth, so very little bullion
was actually put into the hammered years.
A very rare, attractive and desirable coin. SOLD