I've only been able to find one of these in the world junk bins I've searched and she is rough to say the least haha.
Paddy, I could be wrong, but I think that your 1881 H may turn out to be one of the rarest bun-head pennies. According to my Spinks, there are only two varieties of the 1881 H penny, one with obverse 11, the other with obverse 9, and both with reverse M. It all depends on the obverse. Obverse 9 with reverse M is valued at £475 in F, £1250 in VF and £2750 in EF (values from the 2016 edition). Obverse 11 with reverse M is valued at £3, £15 and £95 in these grades. Reverse M, 1881 to 1882: larger Britannia seated on rocks with shield and trident, flatter shield heraldically coloured (last 4 word in bold) date and H below in exergue, lighthouse to left with faint masonry, ship sailing to right, sea does not meet linear circle, toothed border. In heraldry, when colouring is not possible, gold is indicated by small dots while silver is left blank. The colours are represented by thin parallel lines, horizontal for azure and vertical for red - just like the vertical lines you can see on your coin on the St George's cross. Obverse 9, 1879 to 1881: laureate and draped bust facing left, hair tied in bun, with close thicker ties, wreath of 17 leaves, double leaf veins incuse (these 3 words are in bold), 6 berries, no signature, toothed border and thin linear circle both sides. From the photo, I would say that the veins on your leaves are incuse, but I am not sure about the number of leaves and berries. Obverse 11, 1881 to 1883: laureate and draped bust facing left, more hooked nose, hair tied in bun, with close thicker ties, wreath of 15 leaves, leaf veins raised (these 3 words are in bold), 4 berries, no signature, toothed border and thin linear circle both sides, weak circle on obverse. It's always difficult to see the finer details of a coin from a photo, so check it out. I hope you have hit the jackpot!!!
Thanks @Bardolph - you raised my hopes, but I am pretty sure it is Obverse 11. Two indicators given on this webpage: https://headsntails14.wordpress.com/victoria-bronze-obverses/ indicate Obverse 11 - the end of the ribbon points much further down, and Queen's eye is much closer to the Bridge of the nose. It is certainly Reverse M. The scarcer one is the 1860 in an earlier post which is Gouby BP1860R - one of a complex series of variations on Gouby obverse G (not in Freeman and so not mentioned in Spink). I believe my coin features in the article on the same website above.
Pam, I love your coin. It shows honest wear from years of circulation and yet you can still make out the details and date.
Here are my only 2 Earlier large pennies. Told you it was rough lol. I’d love to get a nicer one sometime. At least one sans hole.
Since I collect Welsh coins for genealogical and historic purposes, I also collect British coins since Wales has been ruled by the British for quite a long time. Queen Victoria coins are my favorite, especially the younger variety. But there's nothing like the Welsh Gryphon (dragon), more life-like than the Chinese dragons (IMHO), and especially older coins that depict Cymric.
