I have had this coin for many years man sold it to me refered to it as an ENGLISH CARTWHEEL. Price was right so I bought it. Did some quick research and found this coin to be Australia's first coin. (lil trivia for you)
Uh...close... The cartwheel had this thick border, and I had always heard the tuppence called a cartwheel since it weighed 2 Av ounces...
The cartwheel penny, dated 1797. was the first of its kind produced with steam-powered presses, driven by Boulton & Watt steam engines. This is a two pence, Soho Mint, 1797. KM 619 57.02 grams
Mine is in pretty poor shape--I'm just happy to have one. Here's a size comparison of the 1797 two and one pence coins plus a later Victoria penny. (You can tell from the pink ruler that I have lots of daughters.)
Here's my example of the 1797 Cartwheel twopence with Britannia on the reverse. 41 mm., 56.1 grams. I purchased it from Karl Stephens Inc. in March 1986; it was sold to me as being in EF condition.
Nice example, @DonnaML. Your example reminds me of a question of curiosity I've had. In the abbreviation for Dei Gratia Rex, why are there two dots as a "colon" after the "D" but only a single dot after "G"?
Thanks. I'm sure there's an explanation, but I don't know what it is. It's not unique to the cartwheel coins, though; I just took a look at the legend on my 1806 halfpenny and the same is true there.
Both 1 and 2-pence coins are referred to as cartwheels by many collectors...including me. Two heavy and impressive coins. Bruce
Think better than EF...in AU to me...another gorgeous Georgius regardless...am salivating and I must have one, so going looking! Thx for sharing.
Thank you. Yes, given the size and weight of the pence and 2 pence, they were easily prone to damage and wear. My coin is not without faults. There are some contact marks and discoloration on the obverse rim. But, given the price differences between a coin in choice unblemished condition, and one with some relatively minor ones, the coin I have is a good compromise. I really haven't collected British coinage in any systematic way, so what I have is kind of hodgepodge of coins, ones that I find attractive and/or historical. Truth is that I haven't acquired a British coin in about 20 years, with most of the coins I have dating back to the 1980s and 1990s. One old acquisition that I might devote a threat on is this Vigo crown of Anne, 1703, purchased from Heritage in 1992:
Here's a 2d cartwheel made into a little bowl thing...wine porringer? Not sure. The coin is pretty nice from the look of it, but the rims might be awful. The bowl was silverplate at one point, but the silver is mostly worn away now:
Has anyone noticed that the coin posted by the OP @Southernman189, does not look the same as the majority of the other "cartwheel" coins posted by others? What's the reason? Different denominations? Different countries? I ask questions not because I'm stupid but because I'm uninformed.