Bill Jones' Colonial Type Set
1723 WITH CROWN ROSA AMERICANA 1/2P

Owner Comments:

William Wood's coinage for the British-American colonies was not a big hit with Americans. It was made of 75% copper, 24.7% zinc and .3% silver. The resulting base matal coins were unpleasnat to the touch and underweight relative to their British counterparts.



The scuttle butt was that Wood had to pay a bribe to King George I's mistress who got her hands on documents that authorized the coinage. After paying the bribe, Wood, eonomized on the coins to make the venture profitable. That combined with the fact that "the king's whore" had been involved in the enterprise made the coins most unpopular with the public.