South Africa 1926 1/2 penny
This specimen was lot 72233 in Stack's Bowers Collector's Choice sale (Costa Mesa, CA, October 2021), where it sold for $264. The catalog description[1] noted, "SOUTH AFRICA. 1/2 Penny, 1926. London Mint. George V. NGC MS-64 Brown. Light chocolate brown in color, this lovely example is wholesome and still teases the eyes a decent amount of mint red luster." South Africa, after a turbulent history between English and Dutch settlers and the native population, was constituted the Union of South Africa in 1910. Coinage commenced in 1923. The half pennies, modeled on British half pennies of the sterling system, featured the Dromedaris, a Dutch sailing ship, on the reverse. This type, struck 1923-36 in three sub-types, is common. The date is common but proofs are rare. With the collapse of apartheid, collecting South African coins is now respectable again.
Recorded mintage: 65,000.
Specification: 5.6 g, bronze, 25 mm diameter.
Catalog reference: KM-13.1.
- Michael, Thomas, and Tracy L. Schmidt, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1901-2000, 47th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2019.
- Hern, Brian, John Bothma and Hercie Pieterse, Hern's Handbook on South African Coins & Patterns, Ferndale, South Africa, 2013.
- [1]Orsini, Matt, Kyle Ponterio and Jeremy Bostwick, The October 2021 Collector's Choice sale: World and Ancient Coins, Costa Mesa, CA: Stack's Bowers LLC, 2021.
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