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Eadgar (959-75), penny (BMC.1), with royal title, EADGAR REX, small cross, M in field, rev. INGELRIES MOT, crosses between and rosettes above and below (North West variety), wt. 1.2gms. (S.1130; N.744), almost very fine £300-400
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Edward the Confessor (1042-1066), penny (BMC II), small flan type, Stafford, diad. bust l., rev. DVRREB ON LVN, cross, wt. 0.7gms. (S.1175; N.818; cf. BMC.803), weakly struck, toned, fine to very
fine £150-250
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Edward the Confessor (1042-1066), penny (BMC V), expanding cross type, heavy issue, Colchester, diademed bust l. with sceptre, rev. (STA)NMAER ON COLEE, short voided cross with expanding limbs, wt. 1.6gms. (S.1177; N.823), toned, fine, rare £250-350
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Edward the Confessor (1042-1066), penny, hammer cross type (BMC XI), crowned bust r. with sceptre, rev. BRID ON HAESTI, short voided cross with 'hammerhead' ends, wt. 1.3gms. (S.1182; N.828; BMC 512), toned, very fine £250-350
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Edward the Confessor (1042-1066), penny, pyramids type, Stafford, crowned bust r. with sceptre, rev. (GOD)PINE ON STIE, short voided cross, pyramids in angles, wt. 1.3gms. (S.1184; N.831; cf. BMC.1218), toned, weakly struck on obverse, fine to very fine £250-350
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William I (1066-1087), penny, profile left type (BMC I), Winchester, PILLEMVS REX, crowned bust l. with sceptre, rev. LIVINC ON PINI, cross fleury, with a plain inner circle, wt. 1.2gms. (S.1250; N.839; BMC.67), with old ticket, small edge chip, toned, about very fine £400-500
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William I (1066-1087), penny, bonnet type (BMC III), York, PILLEMV REX, bust facing, wearing ornate crown, rev. HVRDVLF ON EOFI, ornate voided cross, pile and pellet in angles, wt. 1.48gms. (S.1251; N.842; cf. BMC.166), with old ticket, toned, very fine £400-500
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William I (1066-1087), penny, canopy type (BMC III), London, PILLEMVS REX, crowned bust facing beneath canopy, rev. EALDGAR ON LVN, double quadrilateral with incurved sides, fleury at the angles, wt. 1.30gms. (S.1252; N.843; cf. BMC.197), with old tickets, toned, some flatness, nearly very fine, rare £600-700
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William I (1066-1087), penny, two stars type (BMC V), London, PILLEM REX AN, crowned bust facing between two stars, rev. EDPI ON LVNDE, cross botonnée over quadrilateral, wt. 1.2gms. (S.1254; N.845), with old ticket, toned, very fine £400-500
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William I (1066-1087), penny (BMC VIII), PAXS type, Wilton, PILLEM REX, crowned bust facing with sceptre, rev. IELFPINE ON (PILT), cross pattée, PAXS in angles, wt. 1.2gms. (S.1257; N.844; cf. BMC 1055), with old ticket, toned, flatly struck, nearly very fine £250-350
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Henry I (1100-1135), penny, voided cross type (BMC V), Canterbury, HENRIC REX, crowned and diademed bust facing, shouldering sceptre, star in field, rev. (RO)BER(T):ON:CA, voided cross pattée with annulet centre, voided trefoil and annulet in each angle, wt. 1.4gms. (S.1266, N.861), some flatness, lightly toned, about extremely fine, very rare £4000-5000
An exceptional example of this type.
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Edward III, fourth coinage, pre-treaty period (1351-1361), noble, king with sword and shield stg. facing in ship, rev. ornate cross, wt. 7.7gms., the flan damaged - probably a field find, about fine but considerable flatness £500-600
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Henry V (1413-1422), noble, class C, London, king with sword and shield stg. facing in ship, mullet by sword arm, broken annulet on ship, quatrefoil over sail, rev. ornate cross, h in centre, quatrefoil in second quarter, wt. 6.76gms. (S.1742; N.1371), very fine or better £1500-1800
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Edward IV, first reign, light coinage (1464-1470), ryal, London, mm. crown, king with sword and shield stg. facing in ship, E on banner at stern, rev. rose upon radiate sun over centre of ornate cross, trefoils in spandrels, wt. 7.68gms. (S.1951; N.1549), two tiny cuts on reverse, otherwise good very fine £2000-2500
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Henry VIII, second coinage (1526-1544), groat, Tower mint, mm. rose, crowned bust D to r., rev. long cross fourchée over shield of arms (S.2337E; N.1797), attractively toned, good very fine with a sharp portrait £200-250
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Henry VIII, posthumous coinage (1547-1551), groat, York, crowned bust 6 three-quarters facing, rev. CIVITAS EBORACI, long cross fourchée over shield of arms, wt. 2.3gms. (S.2409), fine to very fine £150-200
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Edward VI, fine silver coinage, crown, 1551, mm. y, crowned figure of king on horseback r., shouldering sword, date below, rev. long cross fourchée over shield of arms, wt. 29.40gms. (S.2478; N.1933), poor £350-450
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Philip and Mary (1554-1558), groat, mm. lis, ET for Z, crowned bust of Mary l., rev. long cross fourchée over shield (S.2508; N.1973), cleaned a long time ago and now retoning, scratch behind head and metal flaw on neck, very fine or better £200-250
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Elizabeth I, fifth issue, angel, mm. sword (1582), the archangel Michael slaying the dragon, rev. ship holding shield, no bowsprit to ship, cross above, E and rose above, wt. 5.23gms. (S.2525; N.2005), slight weakness on obverse, but a bold nearly extremely fine, a pleasing example £3500-4000
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Elizabeth I, milled coinage (1561-1570), gold halfcrown, mm. lis, crowned bust l., in elaborate dress and long hair, low ruff exposing the queen's ear, rev. crowned square shield of arms dividing E R, serrated edge, wt. 1.4gms. (S.2545; N.2021; Schneider 764), very faint traces of repair above the bust and on the corresponding area on the reverse, otherwise very fine or better, exceedingly rare £3500-4500
Very few specimens known.
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Elizabeth I, second issue, penny, mm. cross-crosslet (1560-1561), crowned bust l. (B&C 3H), rev. shield of arms (S.2558; N.1988; BCW.CC-3/CC-a6), good very fine with an excellent portrait £150-200
*ex Dr. I.D. Brown (337), bt Baldwin, 1956
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Elizabeth I, second issue, penny, mm. martlet (1560-1561), crowned bust l. (B&C 1H), rev. long cross fourchée over shield of arms (S.2558; N.1988; BCW.MR-1B/MR-a2), small striking crack at 12 o'clock on obverse but on a full flan, about very fine £40-60
*ex Dr. I.D. Brown (340), bt Baldwin, 1956
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Elizabeth I, sixpence, 1568, mm. coronet; Mary, groat; Edward I, penny, class Xc-f, London mint; Charles I, sixpence, type 3.a, mm. bell; Hadrian, silver denarius, the groat poor, the others generally fine or better (5) £80-100
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Elizabeth I, third and fourth issues, sixpence, 1576, mm. eglantine, crowned bust l. (B&C 5A), large rose behind, rev. shield of arms, date above (S.2563; BCW.EG-1/EG-g), wavy flan, slightly scuffed, otherwise very fine £60-80
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Elizabeth I, third and fourth issues, threehalfpence, mm. pheon, 1562/1, small flan, crowned bust l. (B&C 3G), rev. shield of arms, date above (S.2569; N.2000; BCW.BA-3B/BA-d2), slight crease, about very fine, reverse better £100-150
A rare date for a scarce denomination, and an attractive full round coin.
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Elizabeth I, third and fourth issues, penny, mm. rose (1565), crowned bust l. (B&C 3I), rev. shield of arms (S.2570; BCW.RS-2/RS-b), scratch behind head, fine for issue, a rare mintmark for the denomination £60-80
*ex Dr. I.D. Brown (390), bt. Seaby, January 1957 (item y334b)
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Elizabeth I, milled coinage, sixpences (3): 1561, mm. star, large rose (S.2593); 1562 (2), mm. star, plain dress (S.2594), all creased and/or tooled, fair or better (3) £100-150
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Elizabeth I, milled coinage, groat, mm. star (1560-1566), crowned bust l., rev. long cross fourchée over shield (S.2601; N.2032), toned, about extremely fine, very rare £800-1000
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Elizabeth I, trade coinage, Portcullis money (1600-1601), two testerns, mm. 0, crowned shield of arms, crowned ER at sides, legend ends REGINA., rev. crowned portcullis, legend ends MEVM., wt. 6.26gms. (S.2607C; BCW.O-1A/O-a), pierced and plugged, about very fine £900-1100
*ex Hal Wells collection, Paul Bosco Auction 18, New York, 4 August, 1997, lot 69
Unusually, this piece is quite worn – the vast majority of the Portcullis money saw no circulation.
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James I, second coinage, unite, mm. rose (1605-1606), crowned fourth bust r., holding orb and shouldering sceptre, rev. crowned shield of arms, IR at sides, wt. 9.93gms. (S.2619; N.2084), a couple of small marks in field on obverse, very fine £1250-1500
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James I, third coinage, laurel, m.m. lis (1623-1624), fourth head left, small ties, rev. crowned square-topped shield over cross fleury, wt. 9.0gms. (S.2638B; N.2114), weakness to bottom of shield and bottom of bust, flan crack at 6 o'clock on obverse, very fine or better £1300-1500
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James I, third coinage, quarter laurel, mm. thistle (1621-3), second laur. bust l., mark of value behind, rev. long cross fleury over crowned shield of arms (S.2642; N.2118), in plastic holder, graded by NGC as Extremely Fine 40, a very scarce mintmark £600-700
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James I, shilling, second coinage, mm. lis, third bust (S.2654); sixpences (2), first coinage, 1603, mm. thistle, first bust (S.2647), 1603, mm. thistle, second bust (S.2648), fair to fine (3) £100-120
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Charles I, gold crown, Tower mint, mm. portcullis (1633-4), crowned fourth bust l., mark of value behind, rev. crowned oval shield dividing C R, wt. 2.24gms. (S.2715; N.2185), weak in places and a little creased, some light scratches on obverse but with a very sharp portrait, good fine and a rare mintmark £700-800
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\† Charles I, crown, Tower mint, type 2b1, mm. rose over plume (1630-32), crowned figure of king on horseback l., shouldering sword, seven pellets to left of mm. rev. oval, garnished shield of arms, plume above between CR (S.2756; N.2192), in plastic holder, graded by PCGS as Extremely Fine 40 £2200-2500
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Charles I, shilling, mm. triangle; Elizabeth I, sixpence, 1573, mm. acorn, both about fine, the latter with a very scarce mintmark (2) £80-100
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Charles I, halfcrown, Worcester mint (1643-1644), mm. leopard's head /-, crowned figure of king on horseback, brandishing sword, rev. crowned oval, garnished shield, large stars in legend (S.3106; Brooker 1156A), toned, a bold good very fine, extremely rare £4500-5000
*ex Morris collection
An especially pleasing example of this crudely minted coin of the Civil War.
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Commonwealth, crown, mm. sun, 1653, English shield of arms within wreath, rev. conjoined shields, mark of value above (S.3214; N.2721), slightly uneven flan, about very fine £1200-1400
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Oliver Cromwell, broad, 1656, by Simon, laur. head l., rev. crowned shield of arms (S.3225; N.2744), in plastic holder, graded by PCGS as Mint State 62 £25,000-27,500
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Charles II, hammered coinage (1660-1662), first issue, unite, mm. crown, laur. bust l., without mark of value, rev. crowned oval garnished shield, CR at sides, wt. 8.94gms. (S.3301; N.2753), very slight double striking on obverse, lustrous, about extremely fine for issue £11,000-13,000
A pleasing example of this extremely rare first issue. Vastly underrated in the catalogue, research suggests that only one turns up in every ten of the more common second issue. This piece is in almost as good condition as the example that sold at Spink in 2010 for £20,400 including bp.
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Charles II, hammered coinage (1660-1662), first issue, double crown, mm. crown/-, laur. and dr. bust l., rev. crowned oval garnished shield dividing CR, wt. 4.56gms. (S.3302; N.2755), obverse double- and weakly struck, slightly creased, large plug through centre, scratch on reverse, otherwise good very fine £400-500
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Charles II, guinea, 1681, fourth laur. bust r., rev. crowned cruciform shields, sceptres in angles (S.3344), with various obverse marks and has the appearance of possibly having been buried, but extremely fine or better with lustre £2750-3250
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Charles II, crown, 1672, V. QVARTO, third laur. bust r., rev. crowned cruciform shields, interlinked Cs in angles (S.3358; ESC.45), fine £100-120
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Charles II, crown, 1673, V. QVINTO, third laur. bust r., rev. crowned cruciform shields, interlinked Cs in angles (S.3358; ESC.47); with an Edward VI, Second Period shilling, this cracked at 4 o'clock, fine, the crown with a few digs on obverse, about very fine (2) £150-200
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Charles II, halfcrown, 1671, V. TERTIO, third laur. bust r., rev. crowned cruciform shields, interlinked Cs in angles (S.3366; ESC.468), bright, an interesting die flaw on reverse, nearly very fine, reverse a little better £250-300
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Charles II, shilling, 1671, second laur. bust r., plume below, rev. crowned cruciform shields, interlinked Cs in angles, plume in centre (S.3376; ESC.1035), very fine £1000-1200
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Charles II, pattern farthing in silver, 1665, laur. bust l., rev. Britannia std. l., with shield and spear (P.413), small scratches in fields on both sides, about very fine, scarce £100-120
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An original warrant for Royal Seals with designs by Thomas Simon (1618-1665)
The Warrant for Seals for Foreign Letters of Charles II, dated 7 April 1664, with the King's signature and private seal affixed; the designs by Thomas Simon for two seals, 2½ ins. [62.7mm.] and 1 7/8 ins. [47.7mm.], the larger with lion atop a crowned helm above elaborate arms within Garter and Lion and Unicorn supporters, DIEV ET MON DROIT on ribband below, legend around, CAROLVS. II. DEI. GRA. MAG. BRITAN. FRAN. ET. HIB. REX. FIDEI. DEFENS.; the smaller with plainer crowned arms and supporters, similar legend but ending FID DEFEN; inscribed in pencil, pen and brown ink, brown wash, 11¼ x 7½ ins. [285.75 x 190.5mm.], has been folded in past, in good order, mounted for display £8000-12,000
One of only a couple of lots from the original Christie's sale that are still in private hands.
The Warrant reads:-
Charles R [the King's signature]
Our Will and Pleasure is That you forthwith engrave two steele seales for Our Service, to be delivered to Our right trusty and wellbeloved Councellor Sr. Henry Bennet Knt. One of Our Principal Secretaries of State, according to the draught here above expressed, For which this shall be your Warrant, Given at Our Court at Whitehall the 7th day of April, 1664
By his Majt. Command
Henry Bennet
To Our trusty and wellbeloved
Thomas Simonds One of Our
Chiefe Gravers.
Note:
Simon was well known for his Republican views and had been "passed over" at the Restoration. This Warrant is the first to use the expression "Our trusty and wellbeloved Thomas Simonds" and shows, as Derek Allen writes, that "he was not completely out of favour". There is a proof impression of the larger seal in the Hunterian Museum, which is illustrated by Allen, pl. VI, 7.
Henry Bennet, 1st Earl of Arlington, KG, PC (1618 – 28 July 1685), statesman. Bennet was knighted in 1657, prior to the Restoration, and on his return to England in 1661 was made Keeper of the Privy Purse, a duty that oversaw "the procuring and management of the royal mistresses". He was made Secretary of State in October 1662 and represented Callington in Parliament from 1661 till 1665 (in November 1662 he sought the help of Samuel Pepys and others to search for treasure believed hidden in the Tower of London). In Council he led the opposition to the Earl of Clarendon. He was later in the 'Cabal' ministry. He was privy to the secret negotiations for the Treaty of Dover with Louis XIV in 1670 and was created a Knight of the Garter two years later.
Provenance:
The artist's daughter, Mrs. Hibberd; her daughter, who married Samuel Barker of Fairford, Gloucestershire; their daughter, Esther, who married James Lamb of Hackney (d. 1761, and by descent to Raymond Barker, Bruton, Somerset, by 1938; Christie's Auction, 14 July 1987 (lot 27), "Sold by Order of a Foreign Trust".
Literature:
George Vertue, Medals, Coins, Great Seals and Other Works of Thomas Simon, London 1753 & 2nd edition, London, 1780, edited by Charles Coombe
Derek Allen, Thomas Simon's Sketch-Book, The Walpole Society, vol. XXVII, 1938-9
Derek Allen, Warrants and Sketches of Thomas Simon, The British Numismatic Journal, volume XXIII, 1938-41, p. 446 & pl. III, 4, 5
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James II, sixpence, 1688, laur. bust l., rev. late type crowned cruciform shields (S.3413; ESC.1528), creased, marks before portrait, slight edge damage, otherwise very fine; William III, sixpence, 1696, early harp, large crown (S.3520; ESC.1533); George III, Bank of England, eighteenpence, 1812 (S.3771; ESC.971), the sixpence with some flecking, both about extremely fine (3) £450-500
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William and Mary, guinea, 1694/3, conjoined laur. busts r., rev. crowned shield of arms (S.3426), good very fine/about extremely fine, rare £2750-3250
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