I bought this last week on a wim! I'm pleased with it and the seller included a blurb that I'll place below along with a website link for Machin's Mills coin history. It's an exciting link, at least I thought it was. Anyone know anything about these? https://coins.nd.edu/colcoin/colcoinintros/Machin.intro.html Description: U.S. Colonial Machin's Mills 1/2 Penny Coin 1788 This is a VERY SCARCE COLONIAL MACHINS MILLS Halfpenny Coin from New York. This Coin was struck in Copper for One Half Penny and is dated 1788. The coin features the Bust of King George III on the obverse and Britannia on the reverse. Note the Identifying Triangular Denticals on the rim. Counterfeiting of Coins was pervasive during the British Colonial rule of the American Colonies in the 18th Century. The penalty for counterfeiting was Death. Most counterfeiters of that period produced Colonial “Regal Evasion” Coins which resembled British or Irish Half Penny Coins but had different legends and sometimes different portraits that led them to be considered as tokens and not coins. The producers of these coins therefore escaped the severe counterfeiting penalties imposed on other manufacturers. These Regal Evasion Coins successfully circulated as currency throughout the colonies. By contrast the Machin's Mills Mint which was operational by July 1787 produced actual counterfeits that very closely resembled British Half Penny coins that circulated throughout the colonies. The Machin's Mills Mint was operational by July 1787 but they did not have a legal minting franchise. There only income was from their partnership with the Vermont Mint. In order to make a profit Machin and Atlee began to produce counterfeit British halfpence. Normally these Coins are struck on Worn Planchets, consequently this coin grades in Very Fine Condition.
They are fascinating coins. Because it was a clandestine operation, much of what is "known" about it is conjecture. The Whitman Encyclopedia of Colonial and dearly American coins would be a good start for these and other coins of the era.
