By Geni - Photo by user:geni, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=52536173

 

Happy birthday to the USA

The American Rose 1723  - Useful and Pleasant

 

The Rosa Americana pieces, struck by William Wood of Wolverhampton under royal patent dated July 12, 1722, received a disappointingly small circulation in New York and New England. The colonists did not like them and refused to use them. Another coinage by Wood in 1722–24, intended for Ireland but rejected there because of scandalous circumstances surrounding his purchase of the royal patent, was shipped to the North American Colonies. Tokens were made in a special type of brass called Bath Metal (a type of brass) with trace amount of silver, the actual silver content varies from difference sources.

In the 1700s, William Wood, a copper and tin mine owner in England had an abundance of metal and was looking for a way to profit. Wood had heard the American colonies were experiencing a coin shortage. So being an enterprising businessman, Wood used his connection to the king’s mistress—the Duchess of Kendal—to strike a deal with King George I to supply coins to the American colonies.

Under terms of the contract, Wood could produce coins for fourteen years with not more than 300 tons of metal. Wood had to pay the King 100 pounds each year and the king’s comptroller 200 pounds each year.

The rose was intended to flatter King George I as a successor to the Plantagenets and Tudors—despite his German origin.

Wood struck Halfpenny, Penny and Two Pence coins. The first Two Pence designs were undated, and the remainder of the coins he struck were dated 1722, 1723 or 1724.

Due to the metal compound, these coins were lightweight and subsequently some American merchants refused to accept the coins in trade. Because the coins were not widely accepted, Wood stopped minting coins in 1723.

In 1725 Wood gave up his patent contract and instead accepted a pension for three years. Nonetheless, his coins remained in circulation in the American colonies until the Civil War. Examples have been unearthed in parts of New England, New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania.

 

Sources

https://www.blanchardgold.com/market-news/the-surprising-history-behind-rosa-americana-coins/

wiki

https://www.britannica.com/biography/William-Wood-English-ironmaster-circa-1723

 

 

                             Not that Innocent. Three Papal coins

Here are three small copper coins bought for a few pounds each. They are all papal coins, either issued by a pope or in an area of papal rule.

 

This coin I identified by the coat of arms. It is Innocent XI 1676 -89. The other side shows the figure of St Paul

 

The inscription is BONO (NIA) DOCET. The middle line is difficult to read. Date is 164-

Bolognia was ruled by the Papacy. The phrase "Bononia Docet" means Bologna teaches and is a reference to the city’s university.

 

This coin has a door with letters  M D C which is the date 1600. The arms are those of the pope Clement VII. He was first pope to drink coffee apparently!

The door is one of the entrances to the basilicas in the Vatican and they stayed open during Jubilee (special) years such as 1600.

 

 

 

 

                                                             The Coins of Venezuela

 

This month we are looking at coins of countries that hit the headlines. One of these in Venezuela. The Bolívar is the official currency of Venezuela. It is named after the hero of South American independence Simón Bolívar, and was introduced as part of the monetary reform of 1879. It was long considered among the most stable currencies but since 1983, the currency has experienced a prolonged period of high inflation, losing value almost 500-fold.

One of the highlights of my boyhood coin collection was a small Venezuelan coin which I now know to be a Bolivar. I must have given it in 1960s when it was found in change. It is not in good condition or valuable but it fascinated me as it was made (mostly) of silver. To a young boy it was an item from an exotic, far away place.

Many of Venezuelan coin designs have changed little since the 1870s, a symbol of stability of ideals and the economy.  I suppose if you get a good design – stick to it!

 

 

 

BRADFORD’S ARMY

OVER 16,000

THIS MEDAL WAS STRUCK 

IN HONOUR OF

BRADFORD’S SONS 

WHO SO NOBLY 

RESPONDED AND FOUGHT 

FOR

KING, HOME & COUNTRY

IN THE GREAT 

EUROPEAN WAR

COMMENCING 

AUG 4TH 1914

Bradford War Memorial commemorates the 37,000 men the English city of Bradford who served in the British Armed Forces in the First World War. Many of the 5,000 dead had served in the two Bradford Pals battalions and were killed on 1 July 1916, the first day of the First Battle of the Somme. 

See alsohttp://www.bradfordww1.co.uk/bradford-pals.html

SEE 

New Coin? 

I got my first Charles III pound coin yesterday. I have still not had a coin of the new king in my change. This one came from a friend who had another friend who got a bag of them from their bank. King Charles ascended the throne nearly three years ago on 8th September 2022 but hardly anyone has seen coins of the new reign apart from collectors' sets. 

The reality is cash is not used very much as most payments are on line. the main use I have for hard cash now is putting a coin in the slot to get a supermarket trolley. It really is a nice coin with a good portrait, nice lettering and a superb bee design. 

We should see more of them!

 Climb every mountain

Bare headed bust of Lucius Verus, right, wearing cuirass and paludamentum. 

Mount Argaeus with trees, on summit, Helios holding globe and sceptre, at base, animal on left, tree on right. 

© The Trustees of the British Museum

The theme of the meeting this month was bridges, rivers and mountains on coins. Mountains have always been significant in mythology and religion. One of the coins shown at the meeting was a coin from Caesarea in Cappadocia, now Turkey. It features Mount Argaeus and this image or similar was used on coins from  the reign of Tiberius (AD 14-37) until well into the Third Century. The mountain name means “white” and is the highest in Turkey. It is volcanic in origin. Some images show a figure standing on the mountain probably a local god and others have a tree and animal at the base. On some of coins  the mountain is smoking or even fire is depicted. Sources say they there has been no eruption for thousands of years. There was an incident in  253 BC.  The volcanic soil would have made the surrounding area very fertile.

see also 

https://www.cointalk.com/threads/argaios-the-holy-mountain-of-cappadocia.335685/)

https://www.baldwin.co.uk/news/coins-of-the-sacred-mountain/#:~:text=Its%20first%20appearances%20begin%20during,to%20the%20cult%20of%20Mithras.

Money makes the world go round but why are coins round?

here are some coins from India and Malaya which come in all sorts of sizes. 

on the left are older coins made in any shape! these are Byzantine, Afghan and India.