Great Britain 1656 half crown
This specimen was lot 33099 in Stack's Bowers NYINC sale (New York, January 2025), where it sold for $930. The catalog description[1] noted, "GREAT BRITAIN. Commonwealth. 1/2 Crown, 1656. London mint; mm: Sun. PCGS AU-55. Obverse: St. George's shield within wreath composed of laurel branch and palm frond; Reverse: Two shield bearing St. George's cross (England) and harp (Ireland). Slight strike weakness is evident in areas, as typical for this hammered type, but bold luster is exhibited through the fields, and only mild friction appears over the devices. A superior example of this denomination as a whole, and the sole finest example of the date certified by either PCGS or NGC. From the Richard August Collection." By 1650, king Charles was dead and his son fled into exile but Cromwell was unable to bring unity to England. This type was struck 1649-56 and features English legends, a first for English coinage.
Recorded mintage: unknown.
Specification: 15.05 g, 0.925 fine silver.
Catalog reference: S-3215; N-2722; KM-391.1.
- Cuhaj, George S., and Thomas Michael, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1601-1700, 6th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2014.
- Lobel, Richard, Mark Davidson, Allan Hailstone and Eleni Calligas, Coincraft's Standard Catalogue of English and UK Coins, 1066 to Date, London: Coincraft, 1995.
- Rayner, P. Alan, and Maurice Bull, English Silver Coinage from 1649, 6th Ed., London: Spink & Son, 2015.
- 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, January 2025 NYINC Showcase Auction, featuring the Richard Margolis Collection, Part III, and the Richard August Collection, Costa Mesa, CA: Stack's Bowers Galleries, Inc., 2024.
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