another whatzit...a coin this time

[GRAY GHOST]

hello all, this copper coin was given to me by a friend, but am at a loss to know exactly what it is. i already know what your're thinking... that it's a machin's mill half penny or a nova eborac [new york] half penny. it is dateless, but the orientations of the obverse and reverse figures don't add up. similar pieces were made around 1787. i checked out the red book and have done some searches, but nothing yet. could it be a pattern piece? thanks, and hh,

 

[GRAY GHOST]

a good fella named ian in england has told me it's a british colonial half penny from the 1750's and up. wow! it was made during the reign of king george the second, how cool is that? thanks, ian and friends, and everybody else!

 

[draaiorgel]

You're most welcome GRAYGHOST,
I've also passed on your thanks to my friends who helped id it.
Sorry ya got it wrong, the flag in my avatar is the Scottish Saltire.
(But I'll not hold it against you)

 

[GRAY GHOST]

and my apologies for the wrong country, sir. thanks, draaiorgel. long live scotland!

 

[treasurefiend]

Yea, it has to be a British penny

 

[lordmarcovan]

HALFpenny. The Brits didn't make copper pennies until 1797.

That looks to be a contemporary counterfeit. (Not a modern fake, in other words, but a fake made in the 1700s, to pass as small change. Don't fret, though- the contemporary counterfeits can be worth as much as the real ones.)

It COULD be a Machin's Mills issue, but I'm not up to speed on all the various varieties of those.

There were contemporary counterfeits struck on both sides of the Atlantic.

I agree that the portrait looks like George II (1727-1760).