Copper Proof coin from 1791 - British East India Company 1 1/2 Pice

It's not every day I am able to add a proof coin to my collection - still less, one from the 18th century! Which is why I'm particularly delighted to be able to present this coin: a 1791 copper proof 1.5 pice, minted for the British East India Company and bearing its bale mark:

BRITISH INDIA
Bombay Presidency
CU Proof 1½ Pice (29.0mm, 9.71g, 6h)
Dated 1791. Soho mint, Handsworth, England
Obverse: United East India Company bale mark, with date below
Reverse: Balanced scales, Persian legend “balanced” or “just” between
References: Numista 50421
Mintage: unknown
In PCGS encapsulation, graded PR63 BN. Only two proof specimens graded higher by PCGS, none by NGC.​

The Bombay Presidency was a province of British India covering approximately 188,000 square miles along the western coast of India. It began as a Crown possession acquired in 1661 through the marriage of King Charles II and Catherine of Braganza, sister of the king of Portugal. In 1668, Charles II granted control of the territory to the East India Company, which administered the region with some oversight from the British government. Not all of this territory, however, was under direct British rule; within the Bombay Presidency were numerous semi-autonomous princely states administered by local Indian rulers, who helped maintain order and open trade in exchange for British support and protection.

This coin obviously fits well with my collecting interest in the age of exploration, discovery, and colonialization. It's remarkable to think that even in 1791, the EIC had been in existence for nearly two hundred years.

And why not, I'll throw in another favorite EIC coin:

BRITISH EAST INDIA COMPANY, 1600-1874
AR Rupee (30.5mm, 11.66g, 1h)
Dated 1840. Bombay or Calcutta mint
Obverse: VICTORIA QUEEN, bust of young Queen Victoria left, wearing fillet; W.W. along neck truncation
Reverse: EAST INDIA COMPANY around wreath containing ONE RUPEE in two lines, Arabic translation below; 1840 along bottom
References: Numista 24095
Mintage: 398,554,000
In PCGS encapsulation, graded MS62
Attractively toned. The British East India Company was founded in 1600 and over time grew to become the largest and most powerful corporation in the world, empowered to acquire territories, mint its own coinage, conduct diplomacy, and wage war. The East India Company maintained its own standing army, which at one point numbered more than a quarter million troops – twice the size of the regular British Army. After the Battle of Plassey in 1757 the EIC extended its control over much of the Indian subcontinent as well as Hong Kong, which it maintained until the British Government assumed direct rule over India following the Indian Mutiny of 1857. In the following years, the East India Company rapidly declined, and the company that once accounted for half of the world’s trade was finally dissolved in 1874. The London Times offered this obituary of the EIC: “It accomplished a work such as in the whole history of the human race no other trading Company ever attempted, and such as none, surely, is likely to attempt in the years to come.”

* * * * * * * * * *
​

Thanks for taking a look! Feel free to comment and/or post your own EIC coins, early proof coins, or anything else related!

 

Log in or Sign up to hide this ad.

Similar design on one side and almost 100 years after your coin was minted. Prf-62
I do not have any 18th century proof coins, but I'll keep trying.

 

Oh wow! Now that is a beauty!

Here is my much more humble version:

IMPERIAL BRITISH EAST AFRICA COMPANY
AR Rupee (30.3mm, 11.65g, 6h)
Dated 1888. Heaton & Sons mint, Birmingham, UK
Obverse: Crowned sun above ribbon reading LIGHT AND LIBERTY; ONE RUPEE above, MOMBASA below
Reverse: IMPERIAL BRITISH EAST AFRICA COMPANY above pair of scales; in between scales, Arabic inscription عدل [Justice]; below, H over · 1888 ·
References: Numista 17050
Mintage: 94,000
Rich cabinet toning. The Imperial British East Africa Company (IBEAC) was founded in 1888 with the goal of developing British trade and influence in the territory of East Africa. With oversight of nearly a quarter million square miles, the IBEAC was also responsible for administration and given quasi-governmental powers. In 1890, the IBEAC began work on a 600-mile road in preparation for a railway that was to connect the port of Mombasa with the distant border of Uganda. However, conflict with rival interests led to a civil war which halted the project, and ultimately led to the company's bankruptcy and dissolution in 1896.​

 

Mine is pretty, but yours has personality.

 

Gorgeous Georgius! I was hoping you'd weigh in. I love that Bermuda ship, and the cameo effect on the Hibernia is simply stunning!

 

Wow, fantastic piece! How common are these gilt versions? Do you know if they were gilded at the mint, or by some other third party?

 

I've seen copper shells (with silver interiors) on British farthings through the 2P. They did a nice job of preserving proofs!

I haven't seen shells with the East India pieces but if it's SOHO, they likely exist.

 

The Soho Mint was a recognized authority on both gilding and bronzing. In fact, their method was still a topic of interest in communication with other mints even in the late 1820s when Soho’s production of coins, medals, and tokens had come to a meandering crawl. The proofs discussed above and included in my post were all gilt or bronzed at the Soho Mint. However, there are also unofficially gilt pieces floating around, but these are easily discernible by their relatively poor quality.

The shells are an interesting piece of Soho Mint history. It is important to note that not all proofs (coins, tokens, or medals) were issued in shells. On the contrary, the evidence suggests that the bulk were not (at least the coins and tokens). For instance, the 1.5 Pice pictured above was almost certainly never paired with shells, as its production likely predates their existence.

The Soho Mint is my sole numismatic obsession, and the shells have been an ongoing area of specific interest for years. I’ll include a few relevant examples. All of these pieces, pictured below, are from the James Watt Jr. Collection and are most aptly described as “late Soho” (i.e., they were struck at the Soho Mint sometime after the date they were originally commissioned). A large portion of the Watt Jr collection was preserved in shells and inscribed wrappers.

The last picture is of a medal with silvered tin shells. I have several pieces with gilt interior shells, but my camera setup is not equipped to handle pieces so large (63mm). I also have a handful of pieces with what appear to be early “prototype” shells. I could not find my images of these, but I will update this post if/when I do.

I should note that John took much better pictures of the Gold Coast set at FUN, but I haven’t had a chance to replace my images with his in the composites.

 

Super cool coins! Thanks for sharing them and your knowledge!

 

Thanks! Do you have a copy of the book on the EIC Bombay coinage by Paul Stevens?

 

No, I don't. Looks interesting, though!

 

I’ll take a look tomorrow to see if I can narrow down the specific variety of your coin. Would you be willing to DM me the cert number so I can access the TrueView image?