Sketchy 1806 Half Penny

Anything's possible!

One thing I would take into consideration would be if there are any other known examples matching your coin's specifications, which might lend more credence to the possibility of a pattern issue or trial strike.

There were proofs issued (gilt copper/gilt bronze) but they are always fully struck up in addition to being rather scarce.

It wouldn't be too far out of the ordinary if it were found to be a trial piece. Both Heaton's Birmingham Mint and Soho Mint struck a staggeringly large number of different token and coin designs and there are dozens of tokens known with muled obverse/reverse dies, overstrikes on existing tokens, halfpennies struck on penny-sized planchets, etc.

If you fancy a good sit and read you can look up 'The Soho Mint & the Industrialization of Money' (Spink: Doty, R. 1998) or 'Matthew Boulton and the Soho Mint - Copper to Customer' (Brewin: Tungate, S. 2020); Tungate has an appendix with lists of weights and measures for all the coins and tokens described therein. The canonical reference is Charles Wilson Peck's 'English Copper, Tin and Bronze Coins in the British Museum 1558-1958' (first issued in 1964.) I don't have copies in my own library, sadly.

The 1806 issues proved rather more difficult to counterfeit thanks to the combination of the engrailed edge and the concave planchet, as well as Mr. Boulton's absolute insistence on maintaining strict tolerances for weight and diameter, but it's not beyond the realm of possibility that it's a fake. Soho was definitely turning a profit on genuine coins so there would have been a financial incentive for counterfeiters as well.

The cartwheel penny was counterfeited via mold casting as Herr Küchler's design had proved difficult to recreate by the forgers' die-sinkers. Lead casts were copper-washed. They were very soft and easily damaged in addition to being very mushy.

I've heard rumors that some were actually die-struck counterfeits using "recycled" well-worn genuine Soho penny planchets, but have never personally seen one.

Thanks for all the info. I've now got hold of a copy of Richard Doty's Soho Mint book. It's keeping me very quiet! I'll see what the assay office and BMAG have in their collections next, and post something when I get back. I'm a bit busy at the moment so it'll be a week or two before I find anything else out...

Well said!

Well now. Went to Brum Coin Fair this morning in little old England and chatted to an expert, Dr D Symons (see Matthew Boulton And The Art Of Making Money) who pulled in a chap from what used to be Format Coins (alas now closed) and between them they decided that my strange-looking 1806 Soho halfpenny was indeed a contemporary forgery because the quality of the engraving and the strike were both pretty poor. Boulton would never have let a strike of that quality out of the factory (ref the disappearing reverse legend).Taylor, who bought a lot of Boulton's dies in the 19th century, was in the spurious collectibles market so this item would most likely have not passed muster even at his mint. So ladies and gentlemen, there we are, or do it seems. Glad I bought it as a forgery!

Sorry about the long break. Went to West Mids Coin Fair in Brum and took it with me. 2 experts agreed it was a forgery. I just get the feeling the counterfeiter knew an issue was going to come out but didn't know what was happening to the price of copper so put his fake out based on the old size and "shot himself in the foot".

well welcome back, hope your break was a refreshing one..