Just got my 1763 New Jersey 18 Pence colonial note.

I like this one, very crisp signatures, good paper quality, and very legible. And who doesn't love a "To Counterfeit is death" note?



I guess I could have gone for the more iconic red text notes of the 1770s New Jersey put out, but I just couldn't pass up an opportunity to own something a bit older.

Show off any colonial currency you want.

 

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The four penny weight and nine grains of plate assign the silver value of the note. It is a text that actually dying out by the 1760s but was quite common to have the silver plate value of the denomination of currency spelt out prior to then.



So this is my oldest issued Colonial, this being the Boston Merchants issue of 1734 for a Halfcrown or 2/6 It is actually a fragment representing approximately 2/3rds of the original note. The issue was subsequently stopped by the Massachusetts-Bay colony as the colonial government thought it infringed on their privilege of issuing paper currency - ironic since the Massachusetts-Bay colony had been issuing coins, ie the Pine Tree etc and then paper money beginning in 1690 to the ire of the crown in Great Britain.

Though the issuance of paper money by private individuals and crown colonies was not a cause of the revolution in 1776, the indifference of the British authorities to provide circulating mediums of exchange in the colonies was a contributing factor leading up to the revolution. However British indifference to providing circulating coins etc was not a problem unique to N. America, but was also quite an issue in the British isles until the mid 19th century.

 

18 pence is such an odd denomination, and that seems to be a very specific weight. Which (presumably foreign) coin did this equal to?

 

imagine all the people that would pitch a fit if they brought that back. you gotta admit, it would help with all the fakes on ebay .

 

12 Pence is 1 Shilling. So 18 Pence equals 1s and 6P, which is 2 Spanish Reales.

Four of these half Reales!!!

 

Ah, makes perfect sense. I figured it tied to the Spanish somehow.

 

It's tough to find currency let alone fragments of currency that are that old. Nice piece.

 

It makes you wonder how they even survived in time with the protective holders. Must be stored in perfect conditions I assume by people who cared about preserving history.