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Session Seven - Wednesday, February 15th 10:00 am PST1658 OLIVER CROMWELL SHILLING
2917 Great Britain. Shilling, 1658. S.3228; ESC-1005. Oliver
Cromwell. Obverse; Portrait of the Lord Protector. Reverse;
Crowned shield. Flaw near edge. A sharply struck coin and
deeply toned. A popular denomination. NGC graded AU-
58. WINGS APPROVED.
Estimate Value .......................................... $2,500 - 3,000
2918 Great Britain. Memorial Medal, 1658. Eimer-203; MI i,435/
87. Bronze. 38 mm. By Dassier (circa 1731 from series of King' s
and Queen' s). Oliver Cromwell. Laureate bust left. Reverse;
Scene. Extremely Fine.
Estimate Value ......................................................$125 - 150
2919 Great Britain. Silver Pattern Farthing, 1665 . Peck-407.
Charles II. Short hair variety. Laureate bust left. Reverse; Bri-
tannia seated left. Toned. NGC graded Proof 35.
Estimate Value ......................................................$175 - 225
2920 Great Britain. Halfcrown, 1671. S.3366; ESC-468. Charles
II. Obverse draped laureate bust of king right. CAROLVS II DEI
GRATIA. Reverse; Crowned cruciform shields with interlinked Cs
in angles. Regnal year VICESIMO TERTIO on edge in raised let-
ters. Very little actual wear on this low relief mid-17th century
coin. NGC graded AU-53.
Estimate Value ...................................................$800 - 1,000
2921 Great Britain. Threepence, 1671. S.3386; ESC-1960.
Charles II. Crisp mint state with delightful multicolour toning.
Unusual to see one of these small 17th century pieces so well
struck. NGC graded MS-64. WINGS APPROVED.
Estimate Value ......................................................$250 - 300
2922 Great Britain. Pattern Farthing, 1676. Peck-492. Struck in
silver. Edge plain. Charles II Obverse, laureate portrait of king
with long hair by J Roettier. CAROLVS. A. CAROLO. around.
Reverse, figure of Britannia seated with double exergue line
below, and the bombastic assertion QVATVOR MARIA VINDICO
(' I rule the four seas') around. An attractive high grade speci-
men which is practically mint state and toned in shades of blue
and grey. NGC graded MS-63. WINGS APPROVED.
Estimate Value ................................................... $800 - 1,000
* The detail of the king' s portrait (and the figure of Britannia) is
relatively shallow and is not as sharply defined as on the earlier
1665 dated patterns. Peck describes this pattern as ' Very
Scarce' in any grade, and top class specimens have now virtu-
ally disappeared.
2923 Great Britain. Crown, 1679. S.3358; ESC-56; Dav-3776.
Charles II. By John Roettier. Obverse, third laureate draped bust
right, CAROLVS II DEI GRATIA. Reverse; Inverted die axis: MAG
BR FRA ET HIB REX. Tricesimo Primo on edge in raised letters.
Richly toned and nearly mint state this a rare coin indeed in top
grades. PCGS graded EF-45. WINGS APPROVED.
Estimate Value ................................................ $4,000 - 4,500
Charles II was a great patron of the arts and sciences. He loved
discussing scientific issues and conducted his own experiments.
His primary interests were in clocks and watches (he had seven
clocks in his bedroom, each of which chimed at different times)
and in navigation. He was the first monarch to have a royal
yacht, the Royal Escape, and these two interests came together
in his patronage of the Royal Observatory at Greenwich in 1675
under the first Astronomer-Royal, John Flamsteed.
Charles' s views on religion were moderate, but for foreign pol-
icy and political ends he made a secret deal with the French in
May 1670 that he would eventually declare his reversion to
Catholicism. In the mid-1670s however an anti-Catholic mood
was sweeping England, and there was a fear that personal liber-
ties would be infringed by royal whim. In 1679 - the year of this
coin - Parliament passed the act of Habeas Corpus, one of the
country' s most important items of legislation which protects the
individual' s freedom from unlawful imprisonment. In 1685
Charles II died of a stroke while still comparatively young and
was succeeded by his brother James.
2924 Great Britain. Twopence, 1682/1. S.3388. Charles II. ERA
for FRA. Original luster with attractive tone. About Uncircu-
lated.
Estimate Value ........................................................$75 - 100