I am sure most people in the Western Hemisphere are familiar with Elizabeth I made famous by Hollywood and from the destruction of the Spanish Armada 1588 AD. So I have most of the silver denominations of this ruler and I decided to start giving them the photographing they deserve. I am initially happy with several of my results. My attributions are in need of aid I am sure, I have been under appreciating them as of late. Britain Elizabeth I s. 1560/1 AD AR Penny 15mm x 0.50 grams.
very cool coins. so where these milled or hammered? right in that kind of in between time zone aren't they? here's the only coin i have that could have been minted during her reign, this is philip iii of spain...from 1598-1621..probably minted just after her death?
Nice coins, I would like a schilling too. Right now I just have a sixpence bought from a fellow Ct member. I like it. Elizabeth I (1558 - 1603 A.D.) Silver Sixpence O: ELIZABETH: D'. G'. ANG: FR: ET: HI: REGINA, crowned bust left, rose behind. R: POSVI DEV' ADIVTORE M. MEV' (I have made God my helper), quartered coat-of-arms (passant lions and fleurs-de-lis) on long cross fourchée,1571 above shield. Tower mint with castle mintmark. 2.9g 27mm S2562
Question about the terminology. Why are certain types of medieval and early modern coins called 'hammered coins', like there is something novel or innovative about the method of manufacture? Aren't they just struck like so many coins before and after them?
milled coins were machine made-hammered were made by a man hammering two dies together using a mallet---
Hammered is just a term for coins made in the old way struck with dies brought together without modern technology. We never call ancients 'hammered' but they were. The term became necessary when they invented 'milled'. I believe the first coin machines were powered by water mills but the term applies to all machine produced coins.
the first milled coins in the reign of Elizabeth was made by a screw press introduced by eloye mestrelle a French moneyer.the machinery was powered by a horse-drawn mill.the process was very slow and mestrelle was dismissed in 1572--he made coins on his own behalf and was hanged for counterfeiting 1578
thanks for showing your Elizabeth 1 coins.always nice to see--just a very small point--obverse legend reads ELIZABETH BY THE GRACE OF GOD ENGLAND FRANCE AND IRELAND QUEEN-----not Britain I think james vi was king of Scotland---and I think she might just of been famous before Hollywood-----one of the greatest monarchs of all time in my humble opinion,the living standards of the poorer people improved greatly in her reign.
I have a few coins of this famous queen as well, whose long reign rein was certainly a respite from the (luckily) brief but bloody reign of her half sister Mary. Unfortunately, I have no pictures of her coins, but here is one of her daddy - a groat of Henry VIII, and 2 shillings of her half brother Edward VI. of her half brother Edward VI.
Thanks for the reponse guys. I really do love your monarchs that you showed here Eduard. Especially the Edward VI. Thats pretty cool. Who could not like the Henry VIII? I need to get some more of these. I also forgot to mention that the shilling is quite a large coin and extremely impressive in hand. It feels very coin like.
I would add that there's a bit more to the difference between milled coins and hammered coins than just the striking method. The entire process is different. With hammered everything was done by hand, including the making of the planchets. Hammered planchets were the same consistent weight (after trimming) but rarely round and rarely the same size diameter or thickness. Milled planchets were made by machine, they were the same consistent weight, they were always round, and the same consistent diameter and thickness. And the milled coins had reeded or lettered edges to prevent and put a stop to clipping.
I've got nothing to post that is hammered. Here is a milled six pence from 1787. It depicts George III. He is the guy that owned the United States back in the day.
