More British florins from my collection

Hello CoinTalk! I have recently purchased some more florings for my collection, as some of you may already know, I am trying to collect all the florins issued, including their renamed two shilling coin issued under Edward VIII, Georve VI and Elizabeth II.

My first coin is the first florin issued, and isn't in the best state it must be said, however, it is still a nice coin in my opinion, and a real piece of history, being the first time that a two shilling coin (or a two bob bit as they were sometimes termed) was released. The reason for the release of the florin was due to a motion in 1847 to convert to a decimal currency, and coins to be minted in 1/100th and 1/10th of a pound. However, it was decided to test the coin first in 1/10th of a pound to see if there was any demand for the coins. The name florin was decided upon, named after an old coin minted by Edward III, which was worth six shillings, and made of gold. It's name comes from Florence, Italy, where the first coins of a similar value were issued, and was intended for use in Europe and as well as England. However, it's gold value was over-valued, and was few merchants accepted it, and minting stopped after a few months.

The first florin minted was very different from all previous coins; it was the first coin in almost 2 centuries to have the monarch's potrait to be wearing the crown. Also, it lacked "dei grata," which means by the grace of God, part of the monarch's royal title, hence why it is sometimes called "the godless florin". The reserve as the shields of England (twice), Scotland and Ireland, and has "One tenth of a pound two shillings" around the side.

 

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The double florin too was meant to get the English people used to dividing the pound into tenths.

The English people are very fond of doing things the traditional way, so it wasn't until 1971 that the goal of a pound made of 100 pence came to be.

Florins are my favorite English coins, too. I especially like the ones of Edward VII, but it's hard to find them in good condition.

 

The second coin is a florin from George V. This one differs from my other George V florin in it's rear design, and hopefully, I will be collecting three George V florins, the ones minted from 1911 (none were minted in 1910) have a higher silver content than the ones minted 1920-1926 and the ones minted 1927-1936 have a different reverse. Although the silver sontent varied over George V's reign, I only plan to collect these three. I have also re-uploaded my other florin's reverse so you may compare. As you can see, the 1931 florin has a neater design, and more trim if you will, whilst the 1923 florin is slightly plainer, in my opinion, and straighter and less bunched up than the 1931 florin, and I must admit, I do prefer the 1931 flroin's design, as the shield look more attractive than the 1931's shields, in my opinion.
The latter tail is the 1931 florin, and the former the 1923 florin.

 

My final coin is the Victorian double florin, which was another attempt at taking steps towards decimilasation, as John has already beaten me to telling you!
It was one of the shoterst issued coins in British coinage, being beaten by the original Edward III florin, having been minetd from 1887 to 1890, and it's design is identical to the single jubilee face coin at the time, and also identical to the George V 1911-1926 florins (regardless of its silver content).
Interesently enough, due to it's fce value of 1/5th of a pound, the coins can still be used post-decimilsation, as can florins (each with a face value of 20p and 10p respectively), however, they aren't spent as the coins silver value is far greater than it's face value.

 

I suppose we do like things traditionally, my grandad was telling me of how everyone would convertthings they bought in new money, to how much they paid in old money, and complain of how the shopkeeper or publican had ripped them off!

 

Re:



Somebody wrote on mine also!

 

My personal favorite is the Gothic Florin!
Great Britain 2 Shillings 1859
(km 746) ASW .3364

 

How amazing! I wonder what the markings on our coins could've been for, prehaps they were a note of how much money the person had, or mabye a reminder to go and do something. I wonder why.

 

I must admit, I do like goothic florins, although I've not purchased one yet. My local coin dealer, corbitts, is holding an auction in June, and I'll keep an eye out for one then, hopefully one will turn up alongside an Edwardian florin.

 

I know where there are some BU florins for silver spot...........are they worth it to grab them?

 

Neat florins. I have two, a 1921 and a 1931.

 

They've obviously taken the trouble to smooth away the designs in the shields and then crudely added the initials LL and CH. I'd say it's a love token and, from the crude workmanship, probably a love sick youth. Then again a well to do love sick youth. How many people in the Victorian era had a florin to mess around with?

 

And for anyone collecting florins don't forget there are two types for Elizabeth II. km#892 (1953 only) and km#906 (1954-1967, 1970).

There's no pic of the #892 in the current Krause catalog and no explanation for the new type designation.

The reverse are the same (except for the year, obviously) but the obverse is different with "BRITT:OMN" removed.

 

Nice florins geordie.... the so called 'Gothic Victoria' florins have always been my favorite of the series.... with the Edwardian florins a close second.
It was a bit hard to take these photos, and they aren't that great... the little white things and such are all on the outside of the flip the coin is in. This is my nicest example of the type.... for now.

 

I would say definitely, escpicially if they are for a good price. I love silver coins, and good condition ones will fetch considerable interest from both collecters and investors, due to the florins historical and financial points (decimilasation and silver sontent respectively).

Nice pair there Billy, which, out of interest do you prefer?

I suppose you're right thaivic, a token of love. I wonder what my x could mean then, prehaps a kiss. Wouldn't it be remarkable if we were right and both coins were held by the same young man, trying to woo his fancy? And also, thank you for pointing out the two different Elizabeth II florins to me. I haven't researched much on her and her father's florins yet.

 

I must admit, I do love the look of the gothic florin, very different from other British coins, more Latin/Catholic-esque, but I suppose we British do try to distance ourselves from the Catholics, but we do love latin for some reason. I think I will probably make my next purchase a Gothic florin, as they have very much attracted my attention, and I'm yet to see an Edwardian florin in the flesh, and I'm hoping my wallet won't have a moth for a companion until Christmas

 

Well good luck with getting yourself a nice 'Gothic' florin, and make sure to share pictures when you do.... another thing I always liked about these coins, is the fact that the date is in Roman Numerals.
And I find the Edwardian florins to be quite beautiful, I hope to aquire one for myself one of these days.

 

The difference (apart from the 1953 has BRITT:OMN:, removed 1954 onwards) is that the portrait is recut. The 1953 portrait's relief is very shallow, and was found to wear quickly. So, the dies were recut in 1954 to produce a deeper relief. Given the declining British Empire, the BRITT:OMN: ("of all the Britons") was deemed to be superfluous, and was thus removed.

You can tell the difference by examining an Unc coin from 1953 and one from 1954 or later.

 

A nice Edward florin is a thing of beauty! I have a 1906 in gEF, and it's gorgeous! Even worn, these are very striking coins.

 

Edward VII Florin.... yes, they certainly are. It's quite a beautiful design. One I have always admired. Care to share photos of your 1906? We'd all love to see....