England (1453-54) groat
This specimen was lot 40427 in Stack's Bowers ANA sale (Costa Mesa, CA, August 2021), where it sold for $1,800. The catalog description[1] noted, "GREAT BRITAIN. Groat, ND (1453-54). London Mint; mm: Cross Fleuree/-. Henry VI. NGC AU-53. "Unmarked" issue. A SCARCE and desirable type that lacks any of the usual markings on the obverse, this pleasantly struck and deeply toned specimen dazzles with tremendous originality. An extra pellet is noted in the inner quarters of the reverse below the CIVI and LON." The groat, or fourpence, was introduced in the late middle ages as increased commerce required a larger coin than the silver penny. The groat was struck during the reign of Henry VI over several issues and several mints (London and Calais but not York). It was gradually superseded in the seventeenth century by the sixpence but was struck until Victoria's reign and still appears in the Maundy sets.
Recorded mintage: unknown.
Specification: silver, this specimen 3.82 g.
Catalog reference: S-1931; N-1514.
- Lobel, Richard, Mark Davidson, Allan Hailstone and Eleni Calligas, Coincraft's Standard Catalogue of English and UK Coins, 1066 to Date, London: Coincraft, 1995.
- Skingley, Philip, ed., Standard Catalogue of British Coins: Coins of England & the United Kingdom, 46th edition, London: Spink & Son, 2011.
- [1]Orsini, Matt, Kyle Ponterio and Jeremy Bostwick, The August 2021 ANA sale: World and Ancient Coins, Costa Mesa, CA: Stack's Bowers LLC, 2021.
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