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King George V 3 Pence

Started by ghipszky, August 23, 2008, 03:51:13 AM

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ghipszky

I thought I might add another piece to my King George V collection.
Here is a little 3 Pence that is 16mm wide.
Could you guys explain the reverse?
Ginger

BC Numismatics

Ginger,
  The 3 oak leaves & the 3 acorns are linked to the value of 3 Pence.The Sixpence of this coinage has 6 oak leaves & 6 acorns.

Aidan.

bart

The oak is a symbol for England, as is the leek for Wales and the thistle for Scotland.

Bart

BC Numismatics

Bart,
  Northern Ireland's national plant is the shamrock,which is also the national plant of the Republic of Ireland.

Nothing changes the fact that I like the later British King George V Threepences,as it reminds me of the English Maundy Threepence of King Charles II,which used 3 'C's' to indicate the denomination.

Aidan.

Figleaf

You may like them, but the British hated them. The coin was generally considered too small. Its only practical purpose was that they could be given in church, since it was "not done" to give copper coins. They still saw circulation, as this coin testifies, because they were given in change in masses by the British post offices and railroads.

"On the continent" this problem had also occurred. It was solved with copper-nickel coins. For reasons way beyond me (the best I can think of is NOT INVENTED HERE), the British considered this an unacceptable solution. Only decades later was the brass thripenny bit introduced. It was an immediate success.

Peter
An unidentified coin is a piece of metal. An identified coin is a piece of history.

ghipszky

I guess another comparison for me about this coins size, image carrying around a 9mm wide coin! I heard somewhere that they carried these tiny coins in their mouths.
Why did England choose oak leaves? Are there alot of oak trees there?
Ginger

translateltd

Quote from: ghipszky on August 23, 2008, 11:26:41 PM
I guess another comparison for me about this coins size, image carrying around a 9mm wide coin! I heard somewhere that they carried these tiny coins in their mouths.
Ginger

If you mean the little Indian coins of that size, then yes, I understand they were carried around in people's mouths - a bit of a risky arrangement!  Never heard of silver 3ds being carried that way, though.  However, they *were* frequently used in Christmas puddings (lucky coins for the finder), and a number would doubtless have been ingested by slightly less lucky finders over the years!

Martin
NZ



ghipszky

I have never heard of putting coins in pudding or any other food. That could be bad for the teeth.
I should have been more specific, I was talking about Roman coins and possibly other ancient coins from other cultures.
Ginger

translateltd

Quote from: Figleaf on August 23, 2008, 12:35:02 PM
"On the continent" this problem had also occurred. It was solved with copper-nickel coins. For reasons way beyond me (the best I can think of is NOT INVENTED HERE), the British considered this an unacceptable solution.
Peter

You're letting your personal views of the Brits intrude again here :-)

Probably more likely a case of tradition - keep going the way we always have until circumstances make it really impossible to continue (as with the change from silver pence, halfpence and farthings to copper when the silver coins became far too small to manage).

Martin
NZ (12,000 miles from his birthplace ...)

Figleaf

#9
That's a really difficult distinction you're making, Martin, but I will of course accept it, so that we agree. ;D

Small coins are to a large degree something you get used to. When I first went to Britain (in 1967) I was highly amused by their traditions and by the cartwheel size of their coins. At the time, the smallest Dutch coin was the 10 cent piece with a diameter of 15 mm and even the largest, the rijksdaalder, was 33 mm. However, I soon encountered British visitors in this country, complaining about the size of Dutch coins.

Peter
An unidentified coin is a piece of metal. An identified coin is a piece of history.

tonyclayton

Quote from: Figleaf on August 24, 2008, 11:30:43 AM
When I first went to Britain (in 1967) I was highly amused by their traditions and by the cartwheel size of their coins.

And that was after the copper coins had been markedly reduced in size in 1860.

A pocketful of the 1797 twopence would have weighed you down somewhat!

As you will know, the UK has been shrinking their coins ever since your visit; at 18 mm diameter the new 5p is considered too small, and yet it is 2 mm bigger than the silver 3d.

Figleaf

Meanwhile, my fingers have grown fatter, as you can see by my typing. ;)

Peter
An unidentified coin is a piece of metal. An identified coin is a piece of history.