1797 Great Britain, Cartwheel Two Pence

[Larry]

This is a 1797 Great Britain, Cartwheel Two Pence. Intended for circulation, this coin is not a proof, as all of the proofs were bronzed.  This coin is pure copper.  : )

Diameter:  41mm
Thickness: 5mm
Weight: 2 ounces


Here's the design that signaled the imminent end for circulation of Conder Tokens, since Conders would soon become illegal to spend or accept in lieu of this genuine new regal coinage of full weight and of pure copper. First, Conders were banned in larger towns, then in the countryside, and in Northern Scotland and Ireland by no later than 1804.

The official cartwheel one penny and two pence coins were struck at Soho Mint in Handsworth England, near Birmingham. They were very large and thick, weighing one ounce and two ounces respectively. While struck in both 1797 and 1798, all of the coins bear the 1797 date. While coins intended for circulation were only of pure copper, all of the proofs were bronzed, so it is easy to tell this prooflike example was intended for circulation, similar to U.S. coinage with our proof sets and mint sets. This would be an uncirculated, prooflike mint example and not a proof.

Being so large and thick, they were difficult to counterfeit because they required a steam-powered coin press. The only steam-powered coin presses were owned by partners Matthew Boulton and James Watt, but they did sell entire mints to foreign governments.

The way they were paid for their presses was on a percentage basis, based on the increase in production over equipment used prior to installation of the steam-powered mint. Boulton's contract with the government to produce the cartwheel coins had been a dream of his for twenty years or so, that dream was finally fulfilled. Boulton is widely acknowledged as the father of high speed coining.












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[coinsarefun]

Larry,
I'm glad you added the background information on this particular one.
You have a stunning example, one that I am truly envious of

I have wanted one for a very long time and you have just reignited my desire
to speed it up and get one, beautiful, beautiful....thanks for posting it

[Conderluva]

  Wow.  5mm thick and 2 ounces of 18th century copper....what a hunk of burning love!!!

Great pics Larry!  Thanks for sharing!

[BCNumismatics]

Larry,
  That is one very nice coin that you have got there.

Even ones in lower grades are hard to find.

Fortunately,I was able to get one for my collection.

Aidan.

[Deagle74]

OMG Gorgeous!!!!  :'(

[FilthyBroke]

Well, that's the nicest cartwheel I've ever seen by far.  I like the design and looked at a few examples a while back, but most had rim bumps or wear.  Are these really hard to find in a nice UNC condition?  I get that impression from my limited searching....

[Larry]

Here's a population report posted on another site for me.  I count only 35 and some of these may be regrades,
so I'd say they are not readily available in MS grades


This thread got me wondering how nice these giant pieces come. There's only one MS example in the PCGS
population report but NGC (whose slab accomodates these) shows the following figures.

MS BN
61- 5
62- 2
63- 13
64- 11
65- 1

MS RB
64- 1
65- 1

[FilthyBroke]

Are you going to submit it for grading?  I bet you have a great chance at a top pop there. 

[Larry]

Thanks for the population report, filthybroke.  : )

No,  I won't be submitting it for grading anytime soon.  : )

I can imagine coins somewhat better, though I'll admit that mine is nice in hand.
I returned an EF example.  This is the one I was after.

Now for a one penny token of the same cartwheel design.  : )

[mmarotta]

No,  I won't be submitting it for grading anytime soon.  : )
I returned an EF example.  This is the one I was after.

The coin speaks for itself.  TPG is not necessary.  Also, very commendable that you passed on the EF to get the coin you wanted.  Patience pays dividends.

The workmanship is simply stellar.  You have to nod to that. 

A while back, I read Good Money by George Selgin, about the Birmingham button makers and the beginnings of modern coinage.