New find ... and seeking opinions on this unusual Irish coin

8.2g
copper
halfpenny ?

This is an interesting find !

At first glance, I thought it was some kind of fake Voce Populi token but then I noticed the date - so perhaps there's more to this one than I originally thought.

Several questions arise ...

a) is it a contemporary (1760's) counterfeit of a well known, circulating token ?
- the obverse looks similar to a Nelson 11 bust
- the date "1700" is the biggest problem (for me)
- the reverse is also unusual (head between E and R of Hibernia)
- if it is a contemporary counterfeit token, it certainly isn't a very convincing one !

b) is it an evasion halfpenny ?
- the number of inconsistencies would suggest that this might be so
- do you think the "wear" is genuine, if it might have been manufactured thus ?
- only problem with this option is the fact that tokens were banned, so who would "copy" an illegal token ???
- and, again, the date "1700" is problematic for an evasion halfpenny !

c) is it a later (possibly 19th C) contemporary counterfeit aimed at collectors ?
- this is my #1 choice (because, during the 19th C, collectors would not have had many references)

d) is it a more recent counterfeit aimed at collectors ?
- this would be my #2 choice (albeit, not a very convincing one)

e) unlikely, but could it be a genuine token from 1700 ?
- too many design details look like the Voce Populi tokens of 1760
- this is just way too much of a coincidence (for me)

Does anyone have any feedback on these thoughts ?

Bet regards,
James

www.oldcurrencyexchange.com

 

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I'm at work now & have a few reference books at home. I'll post here if I find any info for you.

 

Stacks sold one like this a while back.
You can see (from the photo) that their example (1700) is really 1760.
It also has the head between the E and R of Hibernia.

I'm still not (fully) convinced that this is a genuine die variety from the time.
Stack's sold theirs for $2,990

There's one on eBay for $295 (albeit, in a lower grade)
http://www.ebay.com/itm/1700-Voce-Populi-Colonial-Coin-/292160968777

 

Many thanks.
Much appreciated !

 

Vintage 20th century replica. Is there anything on the edge? Some pieces with this look made from the 1930's to 1970's were marked on the edge by the manufacturer. Some have collectible value.

Edit: I thought it had a look similar to the Becker replicas of other coins of this era, but after some further digging it is a modern replica. https://coinreplicas.com/product/1760-voce-populi-halfpenny-and-farthing/