Images(2)

Virginia 1/2d (no period)

Date1773

Mint Tower of London

Designed and engraved by Richard Yeo

OriginEngland, London

MediumCopper

DimensionsDiameter: 25mm

Credit LineGift of Mr. & Mrs. Edward W. West.

Object number2002-65

DescriptionObverse: Laureate bust of George III to r., GEORGIVS III. REX. around.

Reverse: Virginia arms surrounded by VIRGINIA. 1773.

Label TextAlthough granted by it charter of 1606, Virginia did not pursue the right to a coinage until eve of the Revolution, when the Crown struck the only colony-specific issue ever fully authorized. Although the coins arrived in Virginia in a timely fashion, Treasurer Robert Carter Nicholas wouldn't release them for circulation until February 1775, when the royal proclamation permitting their circulation arrived.

Virginia's 1773 halfpenny was used extensively in Williamsburg, where more than 120 specimens have been recovered from archaeological digs.

Breen #181, Newman-3.F (no period)

ProvenanceVery likely from the Col. Mendes Cohen hoard, found in a keg in Richmond, VA in 1859. The hoard was dispersed by Wayte Raymond in 1929, with some 2900 uncirculated specimens being sold off.