Owner Comments:
****This is one of several coins that hold a special place within my larger collection. It resided in the Boulton Family Estate Collection until it was retailed by my late friend Bill McKivor (a well-respected dealer) in the early 2000s. From there, it was sold to my late friend, Cory Collins, who held onto it for over two decades before selling it to me. Along with this coin, Cory generously sold me several other Soho restrikes from the Boulton Family Estate, which are all denoted with both the Boulton and Collins provenances. Although these pieces are beautiful, rare, and well preserved, the joy I experience from owning them is derived from the memories I formed with Cory over the years of our friendship. We made a point to see each other every FUN show and these visits quickly became the highlight of my numismatic calendar. In the intermediary, we would often spend several hours a week chatting on the phone about the minutiae of the Soho Mint that would otherwise be lost to the average collector. I deeply miss my friend, but I am grateful that these coins remind me of all the great memories we shared over the years.****
This coin is very photogenic, and it can be hard to get a good idea of what the piece looks like in hand from the static pictures. To this end, I am including the images taken by NGC as the main photos, but I am also including the images I took, which can also be found in the main write-up of this set. The NGC images do a better job of capturing the subtle toning, but I think my images do more justice to the contrast between the bronzed devices and the mirrored fields. I suppose they tell two different but equally important stories. Although this is not the highest graded example of this variety in my collection it is safe from the auction block for three reasons. First, it is associated with a slew of very fond memories with my friend Cory. Second, it has an impeccable provenance to the Boulton family. Third, I really enjoy this depiction of King George III. I elaborated more on the third point in the write-up for the PF-67 graded example in this set. Peck rates this variety as
rare.
Obverse: The obverse design depicts King George III facing right wearing an extremely large and highly detailed crown. A series of small stones appear at the lowest band of the crown (i.e., the part closest to his head). This design is superseded by a repeating pattern of much larger stones in various shapes (e.g., rectangular, oblong diamond, circular). The smaller circular stones are used to separate the larger rectangular and oblong diamond shaped stones. The circular stone to the right of the rectangular stone in the middle it slightly askew and appears higher up than the others of similar size. A series of square stones appears at the top of the lowest band of the crown. These stones are larger than the circular stones at the bottom of the band, but slightly larger than the circular stones within the center design. A large, ribbed fabric cushion protrudes from the inner portion of the crown, but this is superseded by an inner band that progressively narrows as it approaches the top of the crown. The upper outer band of the crown is decorated with a repeating sequence of Maltese crosses, a triangular formation of three stones or pearls, and fleur-de-lys. A Maltese cross appears at the center of the upper outer band, which is superseded by a series of progressively smaller pearls. It is implied that a similar band also appears on the other side to make the crown symmetrical. Likewise, an analogous band appears protruding from the inner part of the crown behind the Maltese cross at both the front and rear of the crown (albeit this is a side view). As before, the bands are adorned with a series of pearls that get progressively smaller as they approach the center of the crown. The three visible bands previously described merge in the center of the crown. From this point, a large orb rests at the center with a smaller Maltese cross affixed to the top. Several details of the crown have been altered by Taylor. For instance, Maltese crosses (described as fleur-de-lys by Peck) are now more angular than they appear on the original design. The inner center cross has also been retouched, and in the process, a substantial portion of the pearl immediately above it is missing. The King’s hair flows freely from under the crown. A series of three large curls partially obscures his ear. A large mass of hair, with several distinguished strands flows freely by his temple. A similar mass of hair flows from the back of the crown, terminating in a large curl that forms a closed oval resting on his right shoulder. A single strand forms an unclosed curl resting on his neck. The King’s bust is draped, but there is no brooch depicted securing to his person. The bust is also more noticeably pointed and narrow relative to the officially adopted design. The truncation of the bust is not striated, but a highly stylized
K. appears towards the left of this space. A somewhat ill defined curl appears to the left of the truncation. The legend “GEORGIUS III DEI GRATIA REX” appears tightly curved around the beaded inner border, which is further contained within a thin raised rim. Substantial evidence of tool work on the die (i.e., raised lines) is present throughout the space between he beaded border and the legend. A small detached strike thru error can be seen just under the “T”.
Reverse: By most accounts, the reverse design of this variety is very similar to the others employed in this series; however, Peck (1964) notes several deviations. Like most 1799 Halfpennies, Britannia is depicted facing left, wearing a close-fitting drapery, sitting on a rock surrounded by waves. Her right arm is extended, and her hand holds an olive-branch with 14 leaves and no berries. Her left arm is down with a trident clasped in her grasp. The middle prong points to the left limb of the “N” in “BRITANNIA”. To her left is an oval shield with a thin raised rim adorns the crosses of St. George and St. Andrew (heraldically colored). Peck (1964) notes that a thin raised line appears around the shield, but it is incomplete toward the bottom right of the shield. Under magnification, this almost gives the appearance of the shield being partially dug into the ground. The space between the butt of the spear and shield is almost devoid of detail except for four small horizontal lines. The mintmark “SOHO” occurs on a rock just below the shield, and a series of three raised dots in a triangular shape appears on the rock behind the shield. A 3-masted warship with a poop (i.e., a deck above the main deck) appears in the sea in front of her about halfway down her leg. The sea is weak in places and shows very little detail. Peck notes that the original ship had been polished off and replaced with a very crudely engraved one. This is very apparent when comparing this ship with those engraved by Kuchler, which makes Taylor’s look like something out of a cartoon. Peck also notes that there are no gun ports, and an irregular lump (i.e., raised bump) occurs under the stern. The sea is curved, and a large flaw (i.e., a die crack) occurs from the bottom of the sea extending through Britannia’s foot and eventually tracing the edge of the sea and concluding in almost equal height to the foremast. The date “1799” occurs just under the curved sea, with the “1” completely separated from the sea. Two large die cracks occur on both sides of the last “9” in the date. The legend “BRITANNIA” occurs within a thin, raised rim and toothed borders. The numerous rust spots throughout the fields and the weak spots in the drapery and sea attest to the fact that this a restrike made from heavily repolished and altered dies.
Edge: Plain
Notes: I enjoy this variety enough to add a few more examples should the opportunity present itself. I find the handful of peculiar imperfections on obverse to be interesting. For instance, the inner beaded border seems to break free and protrudes to the raised rim just above four o’clock. Likewise, there is a moderate cud at roughly eleven o’clock and evidence of filing on either side of six o’clock. The reverse also hosts a few peculiarities. My favorite is the triskeles like die crack in front of Britannia’s face. I can also appreciate the die crack that protrudes from the left side of the curved exergue line, and the “antenna” die crack extending from the mizzenmast. On a final note, there are several minor detached strike thru errors on both sides. Overall, this is just fantastic coin with no shortage of character. I hope all the included images allow viewers to enjoy the rich brown tone complemented by the light pastel toning. A video is needed to truly do justice to this coin.