Hi Sylvester et al: I just scanned this Chas I half-crown from my collection, and as Sylvester has noted that coins from this era can be rather complex, I'm wondering if anyone can tell me anything specific about my specimen (particularly the large "M"!). Thanks. Fred Kelso
The coin was minted at Tower Mint in London 1643-44, the (P) in the obverse legend being the Tower mint mark for that year. As for the `M', ornate as it may be it is grafiti. It could be some kind of love token, and i am aware that there are collectors of such pieces but to be frank I consider it `damage'. The `M' could have been placed there the same day as it was minted or fifty years ago. I would doubt if anyone alive knows it's significance. Ian
It's good to have experts competing to answer one's questions! Sylvester, I see you are in Yorkshire. I just finished a delicious Ribston Pippin apple, which I bought yesterday at a local apple festival. The breed dates back to 1687 or so when a pippin was brought to Ribston Hall in Yorkshire from Rouen, France. Regarding your late 17th century collection, I wonder if you have any trade tokens from the period? I'm interested in a token produced for Thomas Wynne, a Welsh Quaker chirurgeon (surgeon) from Flintshire who emigrated to Pennsylvania in the 1680's. The description is as follows: "Wynne's token - a brass penny - bore an unusual design: a towel shadowed by a pair of forceps and flanked by molar teeth". Any suggestions on a trade token website where I might find an image of this piece? Fred
