The Soho Mint was created by entrepreneur Matthew Boulton in 1788 on the grounds of the Soho Manufactory. Boulton designed and patented minting machines for use in his mint that were driven by steam engines and which could produce 60 to 80 coins per minute depending on the size of the coin. The mint produced a wide variety of interesting coins, medals and tokens from its founding in 1788 until it was sold off in 1850. The Soho Manufactory c. 1800 An 1862 engraving showing the Boulton screw presses in operation at the site of the Birmingham Mint, which purchased all the Soho Mint machinery around 1850. One group of coins manufactured by the Soho Mint was on its way to India aboard an East Indiaman ship known as the Admiral Gardner when, on January 24, 1809, the ship was caught in a storm and sank near the Goodwin Sands. Location of the Goodwin Sands The East Indiaman Repulse (similar in appearance and design to the Admiral Gardner) In 1985 the Admiral Gardner shipwreck was discovered and a great number of copper coins were salvaged from the wreck. My coin, shown below, is one of those recovered coins. While the circumstances of its discovery make this a pretty common coin I love the history of the piece and its connection to both the Soho Mint and the Admiral Gardner. If you are interested in learning more about the Soho Mint or the Admiral Gardner the two below links have some really interesting information. http://sohomint.info/index.html http://eicships.threedecks.org/ships/s815/s815_index.html Feel free to post your own examples from the Soho Mint. I know at least @lordmarcovan has a beautiful coin to share with us
I have this one just like yours. It was in a 2x2 flip that said from the Admiral Gardner Shipwreck. I did not know these where struck at the Soho Mint, Thanks for the Info!! .
I love Soho Mint coins, particularly the big "Cartwheel" coppers of 1797. Interesting about the wreck site of the Admiral Gardner. I always had it in my head that it sank in the Indian ocean, for some reason. Love those New Brunswick "ship" type pieces. Here's my Soho gilt halfpenny. I think these gilt proofs were probably VIP presentation pieces. Great Britain: gilt copper proof halfpenny of George III, Soho Mint, 1806
The Soho Mint closed in 1850. The last token minted was the Annand, Smith and Co. Family Grocers token dated 1849. The dies were sold to the Heaton Mint with the minting equipment. Heaton minted the second batch of Annand, Smith tokens. https://collections.museumvictoria.com.au/articles/1832
Wow these are great. The reverse on the Marie Antoinette is particularly interesting! Thank you for sharing!
Naturally, George III was a common subject at SOHO during its heyday, these pieces by Droz and Kuchler.
The SOHO mint also produced a large number of tokens and a variety of medals for Monneron Freres, a mercantile firm in France. These are the 2 sols and 5 sol pieces along with two medals intended for a medallic series that never was produced due to the bankruptcy of the Monnerons.
KH4 1795 late Soho silver pattern halfpenny. Not in Peck. The defining rust marks on the knee, lower drapery and globe making this a KH4 and not a KH2 are clearly visible. Bought in one of the Baldwin's basement sales in 2006, where listed as a P1039 (KH2). A thoroughly acceptable example.
1806 Silver proof halfpenny P1372. This is Peck type KH43 and is readily identified by the two flaws on the reverse at 2 & 9 o'clock. This type is struck in 4 finishes - silver, gilt, bronzed and copper. All four varieties are rare, with only 1 or possibly 2 examples of each available. This coin ex-Selig collection, sold in 1999.
The first Soho halfpennies were the Droz patterns dated 1788. This is a late Soho P966 'brown gilt' type DH11. These are common and offer the collector requiring a representative example the easiest way to get one. This design has two types of edge, one a braided rope called guilloche and the other reads RENDER TO CESAR THE THINGS WHICH ARE CESARS