Great Britain 1730 farthing
This specimen was lot 2247 in Goldberg sale 110 (Los Angeles, June 2019), where it sold for $3,000. The catalog description[1] noted, "Great Britain. Copper Proof Farthing, 1730. George II. Bronze finish. Obverse: Laureate bust of king left GEORGIVS II REX. Reverse: Britannia seated left. Edge plain. Beautiful near flawless mirror fields on this rare dark chocolate Proof. NGC graded Proof 66 Brown." This type was struck 1730-39. The mint did not produce near enough small change for the industrial boom of the eighteenth century, leading to a proliferation of private tokens. The situation would not be rectified until the reform of 1817.
Recorded mintage: unknown.
Specification: 4.93 g, copper, 23 mm diameter.
Catalog reference: S.3720; KM-572.
- Michael, Thomas, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1701-1800, 7th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2016.
- 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.
- Freeman, Michael J., The Bronze Coinage of Great Britain, Rev. Ed., London: Spink & Son, 2006.
- Peck, C. Wilson, English Copper, Tin and Bronze Coins in the British Museum, 1558-1958, 2nd Ed., London: Oxford University Press, 1970.
- [1]Goldberg, Ira, Larry Goldberg, John Lavender, Yifu Che, Jason Villareal and Stephen Harvey, Goldberg Sale 110: the Pre-Long Beach Auction, Los Angeles: Goldberg Coins and Collectibles, 2019.
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