King George III Half Penny 1770ish?

[TheBigJustino]

Before this past weekend, the oldest coin I found was a 1929 Mercury dime. As of this past Sunday, I have crossed the 1700's threshold. I'm quite sure that I have found a King George III Half Penny. The reverse is toast, but the bust is visible. I put up some photos before cleaning, and one from after removing the corrosion. Please let me know if you agree or have an additional input. Thank you for your time.

 

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[TheBigJustino]

Sorry it took so long to get back to you guys. I've been trying to fit in a couple more adventures before the snow flies. Below are pictures of the coins weight and diameter. The coin is a little oblong so I included a photo of the larger and smaller measurements.

 

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[Rick (Nova Scotia)]

Take no offense to it being a contemporary counterfeit.

1) by February of 1753 it was estimated almost half the coppers in circulation were counterfeit. At the same time significant quantities of counterfeits were being sent to the colonies.

and the problem got worse.

2) 1770 the counterfeiters outdid themselves, far surpassing the production of the royal mint.....
in D.T. Batty's 1886 catalogue listing all of the varieties of halfpence he could find bearing the dates 1770-1775, there are 567 different varieties, of which 52 varieties were genuine issues and 515 were counterfeit issues.

1, and 2 are quotes taken from this page.
Counterfeit British Coppers

So simply as a numbers game we are most likely to find a counterfeit esp. in those years.

 

[Eastcoasthunter21]

It's still a 1700s coin and cool whatever it is. Nice digs

 

[johnnyblaze]

Regal = Genuine

=Geniuses

 

[BuckleBoy]

Remember that "counterfeit" means it was still made in the 1700s and in no way demeans or devalues your find. It is a legitimate colonial coin, and in fact one with an even more interesting story to tell about our nation's history. A good many counterfeits are worth more than originals, because of this history. Believe it or not, a KG anything has been on my list for 25 years. One day, I'll get one. I mean, I've dug just about everything else, and so many things so much more scarce. Just never run a coil across one of those. I'm jealous!

Congrats,

Buck

 

[TheBigJustino]

Take no offense to it being a contemporary counterfeit.

1) by February of 1753 it was estimated almost half the coppers in circulation were counterfeit. At the same time significant quantities of counterfeits were being sent to the colonies.

and the problem got worse.

2) 1770 the counterfeiters outdid themselves, far surpassing the production of the royal mint.....
in D.T. Batty's 1886 catalogue listing all of the varieties of halfpence he could find bearing the dates 1770-1775, there are 567 different varieties, of which 52 varieties were genuine issues and 515 were counterfeit issues.

1, and 2 are quotes taken from this page.
Counterfeit British Coppers

So simply as a numbers game we are most likely to find a counterfeit esp. in those years.

I greatly appreciate the information Rick. Personally I enjoy the history of the counterfeit more so than a genuine, and couldn't be happier with this find. Happy hunting!

 

[Mathurin]

Congrats on your find ! I have also found a King George III Half penny this weekend (my first one !) and it is also a counterfeit, like most of the coins of this period I have found. Like others have said they are in no ways an "inferior" find than the regal one, it is just another part of the identification/information about your coin.
Here is mine, with the date cut in half :

 

[bill_wabo]

Hey, counterfeit or not, that's an entry to the 1700's club, congrats on that find! Go back, that penny wasnt alone for sure.

 

[CASPER-2]

Take no offense to it being a contemporary counterfeit.

1) by February of 1753 it was estimated almost half the coppers in circulation were counterfeit. At the same time significant quantities of counterfeits were being sent to the colonies.

and the problem got worse.

2) 1770 the counterfeiters outdid themselves, far surpassing the production of the royal mint.....
in D.T. Batty's 1886 catalogue listing all of the varieties of halfpence he could find bearing the dates 1770-1775, there are 567 different varieties, of which 52 varieties were genuine issues and 515 were counterfeit issues.

1, and 2 are quotes taken from this page.
Counterfeit British Coppers

So simply as a numbers game we are most likely to find a counterfeit esp. in those years.

hit it right on the head -
I had a site yrs ago - on puter that crashed where guy had pics of all kinds on "contemporary" fakes
or period counterfeits if you like - Ive found a few that were crude - ones with poor metals and one that is too detailed
out of like 50 coppers - maybe 15 -20 are "regal"