George III (1760-1820), Soho Mint, Birmingham, Penny, 1797, a contemporary forgery from official dies stolen from the Soho mint, small draped bust right, ermined borders smoothed down, wreath of 10 leaves and 2 berries, uppermost double-cut, tip of tie-riband points downwards, k · : on shoulder, large letters, rev. Britannia seated left on rock, olive branch with 10 leaves [some detached], incuse triangle of dots on rock at right, ship with 6 incuse gunports, large letters, 18.86g/5h (BMC 1110 [KP 14]); Adams 17). Fine, even brown patina £40-£50

This lot was sold as part of a special collection, The Philip Richardson Collection of George III Copper Coins.

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Collection

Baldwin Auction, 14 February 2009, lot 102 (part); M.J. Martin Collection; bt M.J. Martin September 2012.

These lightweight forgeries, to judge from contemporary reports, were made in large numbers, principally in Birmingham, and circulated freely during the first half of the 19th century, when many of those who used them would have compared their weight directly to copper pennies of George III’s fourth issue, and to those of George IV, William IV and Victoria, which averaged 18.5g