Commonwealth

An Enigmatic Commonwealth Farthing – Tracing Edward Rowland’s Patterns of 1652 – Gary Oddie

This note presents a farthing with the legends PITTY THE POOR 1652 / SVCH GOD LOVES ER (Williamson Uncertain 76, Peck 369). Contemporary documents confirm that this is a pattern issued by Edward Rowland to support a petition to Parliament to issue a base metal token coinage. Edward Rowland is identified as a wealthy goldsmith, with premises close to Blossom’s lane that were destroyed in the Great Fire of 1666.

A Counterfeit 1928 Australian Shilling – Gary Oddie

This note will describe a very successful counterfeiting operation that took place in Australia in the early 1930s. The counterfeit shillings, dated 1928, were of such high quality that they could be deposited directly into banks, from where they made it into circulation. The quantities involved were so large that the banks noticed the accumulation in their vaults and an investigation began. The counterfeits were being manufactured in China from good silver and imported to Australia by a Sydney businessman, where they were exchanged for notes. The silver bullion prices at the time meant there would be a profit, not counting production and shipping costs, of about 9½d per shilling. Following the trial, three Chinese men and their families were asked to leave Australia and not to return.

The Treason Act – 17 July 1649 – Gary Oddie

Tuesday 17th July was a busy day in Parliament. Along with the previously noted Act defining the denominations, weights, and designs of the new Commonwealth coinage, an act was also passed declaring what offences shall be adjudged treason.This act is just five pages long, but the last page and a half refer to all aspects of the circulating gold and silver coinage. A brief summary is given along with a reproduction of the whole act.

The Coinage Trials of 1651 ‑ The Third Side of the Coin – Gary Oddie

This short note presents the background to the coinage trials held at Whitehall on 8 May 1651 and the details of the grained edges that were specified as part of the trials. The sequence of events can be found in the book; “The Answer of the Corporation of Moniers in the Mint“, published in 1653, which is a compilation of several documents, letters and pamphlets. These trials heralded the introduction of grained and lettered edges to the silver and gold coins to ward against counterfeiting and clipping. The grained edges of the trial pieces produced by David Ramage and Peter Blondeau are looked at in detail, along with the grained edges that can be found on later ‘milled’ coins. Features of the grained edges confirm that the Blondeau patterns and later pieces were edged using a Castaing type machine, the design and operation of which is described.

Contemporary Counterfeit Shillings of the Commonwealth 1649-1660 – Gary Oddie

This short note presents some counterfeits of the shillings issued during the Commonwealth. A brief summary of the official coinage is followed by images and analysis of 44 counterfeit shillings from two accumulations – the Baldwin black museum and the author’s collection. Though a relatively small sample, that there are very few die duplicates between and within the two collections suggests there are many more yet to be found. However, considering the present-day scarcity of the official issues, counterfeit shillings with the anchor initial mark make up 25% of the specimens. This may be attributed to the short period around the beginning of the reign of Charles II where there is a documented increase in counterfeiting activity attributed to the uncertainty of the future acceptability of the Commonwealth coins. XRF analysis of one group reveals that one piece is likely a genuine coin (but very damaged) and another is a 20th century fabrication as the alloy contains Hafnium, a metal

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