Scotland 1572 1/2 merk

Stack's Bowers 2025 NYINC sale, lot 37392

This specimen was lot 37392 in Stack's Bowers NYINC sale (New York, January 2025), where it sold for $105. The catalog description^[1] noted, "SCOTLAND. 1/2 Merk (Noble), 1572. Edinburgh Mint. James VI. PCGS Genuine--Graffiti, VF Details. From the Richard August Collection." This type was struck 1572-80 and was worth six Scottish shillings and eight pence ("6 8" on the coin). The reverse motto, "· SALVVM · FAC · POPVLVM · TVVM ·DNE ·", means, "O Lord, save Thy people".

Recorded mintage: unknown.

Specification: 6.79 g, 0.666 fine silver, 32 mm diameter.

Catalog reference: S-5478.

Source:

• Lobel, Richard, Mark Davidson, Allan Hailstone and Eleni Calligas, Coincraft's Standard Catalogue of the Coins of Scotland, Ireland, Channel Islands & Isle of Man, London: Coincraft, 1999.
• Skingley, Philip, ed., Standard Catalogue of British Coins: Coins of Scotland, Ireland and the Islands (Jersey, Guernsey, Man & Lundy), Pre-Decimal Issues, 2nd edition, London: Spink & Son, 2003.
• ^[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.

Link to:

• Scotland 1571 ryal Dav-8463 without counterstamp
• 1575 half merk
• Coins and currency dated 1572