Posted 12/26/2021 03:45 am
Nice group.
These coins were used extensively in the United Kingdom where they are from, but also saw huge use more in the smaller island and tropical colonies.
Mostly places with a poorer population or more rural one that needed small value coins for everyday minor purchases. Farthings saw much use in Ceylon to 1890, Malta, Cyprus, most British west Indian Islands and Guyana/Belize, Mauritius to 1877, St Helena, some African colonies like Nigeria, Gold Coast etc.
Malta and Ceylon also were places that even needed smaller coins minted like ½, ¼ and 1/3 farthings and also small silver coins like 1½d.
They were legal tender throughout the empire in any place without its own coinage (ie: India was exempt as it had its own coinage made for it, but it had worthless coins like the One Pice etc). They never saw much usage here in NZ, but I have heard people say they remember farthings in 1930s, but not after 1940 when we got our own coinage and the halfpenny was the smallest.
My guess is most "White" colonies and dominions did not use them and only had coins down to the Halfpenny. You also had colonial farthings - Not British ones, used in South Africa from 1923 and Jamaica from 1869 and likely used in colonies adjacent to them. Ireland also had its own farthings from 1928 and used them through to 1967.
The last British farthing was issued in 1956, but South Africa and Jamaica minted and used farthings to 1960 (SA and the Half Cent superseded it) and Jamaica to 1968.
These coins were used extensively in the United Kingdom where they are from, but also saw huge use more in the smaller island and tropical colonies.
Mostly places with a poorer population or more rural one that needed small value coins for everyday minor purchases. Farthings saw much use in Ceylon to 1890, Malta, Cyprus, most British west Indian Islands and Guyana/Belize, Mauritius to 1877, St Helena, some African colonies like Nigeria, Gold Coast etc.
Malta and Ceylon also were places that even needed smaller coins minted like ½, ¼ and 1/3 farthings and also small silver coins like 1½d.
They were legal tender throughout the empire in any place without its own coinage (ie: India was exempt as it had its own coinage made for it, but it had worthless coins like the One Pice etc). They never saw much usage here in NZ, but I have heard people say they remember farthings in 1930s, but not after 1940 when we got our own coinage and the halfpenny was the smallest.
My guess is most "White" colonies and dominions did not use them and only had coins down to the Halfpenny. You also had colonial farthings - Not British ones, used in South Africa from 1923 and Jamaica from 1869 and likely used in colonies adjacent to them. Ireland also had its own farthings from 1928 and used them through to 1967.
The last British farthing was issued in 1956, but South Africa and Jamaica minted and used farthings to 1960 (SA and the Half Cent superseded it) and Jamaica to 1968.
