1890 Double Florin "barmaid's Grief"

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Author	Replies: 4 / Views: 3,233
Jaobler Pillar of the Community United States 6384 Posts	Posted 11/09/2011 2:14 pm Here's a new purchase from ebay. I'm quite pleased with this coin which appears to have original surfaces and color. Traces of luster remain in the protected areas and some attractive orange toning adds appeal. I read an interesting factoid about this denomination. It is almost as large as the similar crown piece (5 shillings) and the denomination does not appear on the coin. It seems that these 4-shilling coins were passed as crown pieces in bars and restaurants, short-changing the waitresses. So, they received a nickname of "barmaid's grief". I assume the poor barmaids had to make up any shortage from their own purse. Anyway, I was happy to get this one! Report this Post to the Staff

D0ubl3Eagle Pillar of the Community United States 5854 Posts	Posted 11/09/2011 6:08 pm Beautiful coin and some very interesting information about the coin! Sort of reminds me of our Twenty Cent Piece. Report this Post to the Staff
Apollo Pillar of the Community Canada 1610 Posts	Posted 11/09/2011 7:30 pm Very nice coin Jaobler Report this Post to the Staff
Bacchus2 Pillar of the Community United Kingdom 2872 Posts	Posted 11/10/2011 03:29 am These are great coins and surprisingly easy to pick up in good condition - I think they must have been hoarded as novelties when they came out - and the series was short lived. While Wikipedia repeats the "Barman's grief" story - Tony Clayton's great site suggests that this is an urban myth http://www.coins-of-the-uk.co.uk/fours.html so it's difficult to know what is the truth. My Papal States coin collection: https://diadumenian.com/Papal%20Sta...0States.html Medieval coins collection: https://diadumenian.com/Congressofp...0Europe.html Indian Rupee Collection: https://diadumenian.com/Congressofp...0Rupees.html Minor world Silver: https://diadumenian.com/Congressofp...20coins.html Report this Post to the Staff
sel_69l Bedrock of the Community Australia 21786 Posts	Posted 11/10/2011 05:31 am Quite a handsome looking coin. They turn up in good condition nowadays, because they did not see much circulation. Apart from being 'The Barmaid's Grief', the Double Florin was not a popular coin, anyway. By 1890, the crown wasn't all that popular as a circulating coin, either. 1902 was the last date that crowns were struck for circulation. By the turn of the 20th Century, both had almost dissappeared from practical circulation. I do not know, but I suspect that by 1900, there were far more silver dollars in practical circulation in the U.S., than there were crowns circulating in Great Britain. Nevertheless, I also suspect that dollar notes saw a wider circulation silver dollar coins. Report this Post to the Staff
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1890 Double Florin "Barmaid's Grief"