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 Replies: 9 / Views: 9,370 |
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New Member
United Kingdom
2 Posts |
hello! I have found 2 old half pennies that appear to only be stamped/printed on one side! Are they valuable? One is George 4th and one Queen Victria, so assume late 1890's...? I will try and post pics shortly, but any advice would be gratefully received!
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Moderator
 Australia
16862 Posts |
Hello and welcome.  It is impossible for a coin to be "stamped only on one side", just like it's impossible to clap with only one hand - the design is impressed onto both sides of a coin at the same time as it is squeezed between the two dies. What you have is either a coin that has been so heavily worn that there's absolutely no trace left of the design on one side, or you've got normal halfpennies which somebody at some time (probably a long time ago, when the coin would have been found in change) and ground off the design on one side with sandpaper or a lathe. Why would someone do that? We can only speculate. It was fashionable in those days to grind off one side of a coin, and engrave your initials or some other message on it, and give it to a loved one. Such "love tokens" are considered damaged coins by some collectors, as collectables in their own right by others, but a "blank love token" is just a damaged coin, in anyone's eyes. Don't say "infinitely" when you mean "very"; otherwise, you'll have no word left when you want to talk about something really infinite. - C. S. Lewis
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Rest in Peace
United States
9104 Posts |
Coins are rarely uniface. Pix will help, Also, if you can weigh them to .1 gram or .1 dwt, it will help a lot.
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New Member
 United Kingdom
2 Posts |
Thanks for that....Just wondering whether they could be forgeries? They definately dont look ground down and the edges are sharp still. I dont see how one side could get completely smooth when the other has some wear...shouldnt they be same? I'm still trying to sort my camera out, but will get pics to view a.s.a.p
Thanks!
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Rest in Peace
United States
9104 Posts |
Wear should be approximately equal, but stranger things have happened.
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Pillar of the Community
United Kingdom
2490 Posts |
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Valued Member
60 Posts |
Victoria came onto the throne in 1837 and died in 1901, so to assume it was 1890s is quite a way out. The pennies that you describe could be brockage errors in which case could be rare, depending on if they were brockages or not.
Pictures are helpful
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Valued Member
United States
321 Posts |
The 1950 and 1951 Pennies are key dates. Quality is king!
satxwd
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New Member
United Kingdom
25 Posts |
I think it is very likly that the coins were rubbbed down on one side to play the old English pub game of 'shove halfpenny'. Usually played with 5 or 6 coins or so on a flat board or slate. Very rarely played now but I am sure there are one or two pubs still about.
I have an old pub slate board in my garage and the coins I have are rubbed down Napoleon 111 coins of 1853. Foreign coins used are the most likely as I believe it was illegal at one time to deface coins of the realm, still is possibly.
I went to an old pub some years ago where they had a table with the lines set for 'shovepenny'. A bit rare.
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Rest in Peace
United States
9104 Posts |
alganbagerap Posted that 05/10/2011 6:58 pm
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Replies: 9 / Views: 9,370 |
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Posted 05/10/2011 09:11 am
