DENOMINATIONS.--_Silver._ Crown, Half-crown, Testoon or Shilling,
Sixpence, Groat, Threepence, Half-groat, Penny, Halfpenny, Farthing.
_Gold._ Treble-sovereign, Double-sovereign, Sovereign or Double-rial,
Half-sovereign, Quarter-sovereign or Crown, Half-crown, Six-angel,
Angel, Angelet.
OBVERSE.--_Type._ First coinage, which is base in the same degree as
Henry VIII.’s last coinage. Testoon, etc., profile, crowned with an
open arched crown; Penny and Halfpenny, some with crowned profile,
others with the royal rose. Farthing, portcullis.
Later coinages. Crown, the king in armour, crowned, sword drawn, on
horseback; to the right, under the horse, the date. Half-crown, the
same, sometimes with the addition of a plume on the horse’s head.
Shilling, Sixpence, and Threepence, fullfaced bust of king in robes,
with the chain of the Order of the Garter round his neck, crowned, a
rose on the left, and the value on the right side of the head. Penny,
king enthroned, crowned ball and sceptre in his hands, or royal rose.
_Legend._ E. ED. EDWAR. EDWARD. EDOARD. EDOVARD. or EDWARDVS. VI.
or 6.--D. DEI.--G. GRA.--AGL. ANGL.--FRA. FRANCIE. Z.--HIB. HIBE.
HIBER.--REX. etc. Testoon, TIMOR DOMINI FONS VITE. MDXLIX. or
MDXL.[2]--likewise on reverse, INIMICOS EIVS INDVAM CONFVSIONE. Penny,
E. D. G. ROSA SINE SPINA. Crown, SCVTUM FIDEI PROTEGET EVM; or RVTILANS
ROSA SINE SPINA. Half-sovereign, SCVTVM FIDEI PROTEGET EVM MDXLVIII[3];
or LVCERNA PEDIBVS MEIS VERBVM TVVM.
REVERSE.--_Type._ One Testoon has the arms of France and England in an
oval shield mantled; all others have the cross fleury, and plain shield
of France and England quarterly. Farthing, cross and pellets.
_Legend._ POSVI DEVM ADIVTOREM MEVM and its abbreviations, and town
names. Other legends are E. R. INIMICOS EIVS INDVAM CONFVSIONE; TIMOR
DOMINE FONS VITE; IHS. AVTE TRANSIE PER MED ILLOR IBAT; SCVTVM FIDEI
PROTEGET EVM; PER CRVCEM TVAM SALVA NOS XPE. RED.; IHESV. AVTEM
TRANSIENS PER MEDIVM ILLORVM IBAT; and on some the titles appear.
_Rarity._ Gold coins rare, some extremely so. Silver, first coinage,
the Testoon, Groat, Half-groat, and Penny, rare; all his last are
tolerably common, with the exception of the Crown, Half-crown, and
Penny. Halfpenny and Farthing rare.
_Gold._Treble-sovereigns, with the king in robes, and crowned, seated
on the throne, drawn sword in right, and orb in left, hand; reverse,
royal arms, with supporters, a lion and a dragon. Double-sovereigns,
similar figure, but with sceptre instead of sword; a portcullis at his
feet. Sovereign, same as Double-sovereign, or a half-length figure of
the king in profile, in armour, crowned, sword in right hand, orb in
left; reverse, arms of France and England, crowned, with or without
lion and dragon supporters; beneath, on the mantling, E. R.; others
have the same type as the foregoing. Half-sovereigns, king in chair of
state; half-length figure, and bust crowned, etc.
[2] The first date that appears on any English silver coins.
[3] The first instance of a date upon an English gold coin.
MARY I. AND PHILIP AND MARY. (1553 to 1558.)
Married Philip of Spain, 1554.
DENOMINATIONS.--_Silver._ Half-crown, Shilling, Sixpence, Groat,
Half-groat, Penny. _Gold._ Sovereign or Double-rial, Rial, Angel,
Angelet.
OBVERSE.--_Type._ Before her marriage, Mary’s coins have a sinister
bust profile, crowned, arched crown, hair long and flowing, draped. One
Penny, a rose instead of head. After her marriage with Philip of Spain,
the Shilling and Half-shilling have their busts face to face, with a
crown above between them: here she appears with her dress up to her
chin, and a head dress; he has the stiff ruffle about his neck. This
arrangement of the profile heads facing each other gave rise to the
couplet,
“... cooing and billing
Like Philip and Mary on a shilling.”
The Half-crown, which appears to be merely a pattern-piece, but never
issued, has on one side her bust, over which is the crown between the
date 1554, with the legend MARIA D. G. R. ANG. FR. NEAP. PR. HISP.; and
on the other a similar bust of Philip, beneath a crown, and the legend
PHILIPVS D. G. R. ANG. FR. NEAP. PR. HISP. Some of the coins have no
date, others the date above, others below the heads.
_Legend._ M. or MARIA.--D. G. ANG.--FR. FRA. Z. HIB. REG. or REGI.
Shilling and Sixpence, PHILIP. ET. or Z.; or MARIA. D. G. R. ANG. FR.
NEAP. PR. HISP.; or PHILIP ET MARIA D. G. REX ET REGINA ANG. or ANGL.
Some have the date as 1553 either beneath the heads or by the crown.
Penny, M. D. G. ROSA SINE SPINA; or P. Z. [ET] M. D. G. ROSA SINE SPINA.
REVERSE.--_Type._ Before the marriage, cross fleury and shield, as on
her predecessor’s coins. After the marriage, Shilling and Sixpence bear
the Spanish and Neapolitan royal arms, impaling those of England, in an
oval shield, mantled; surmounted by a crown, between numerals for value.
_Legend._ Groat and Half-groat of Mary, VERITAS TEMPORIS FILIA,
and also abbreviated; of Philip and Mary, POSVIMVS DEVM ADIVTO
NOS. Shilling and Sixpence, POSVIMVS DEVM ADIVTOREM NOSTRVM, and
abbreviated. Penny, CIVITAS LONDON; or VERITAS TEMP FILIA.
_Rarity._ Rose-penny rare; Half-crown, Half-groat, and Penny, extremely
so.
_Gold._ Sovereign or Double-rial, the queen full-robed and crowned
seated on the throne, in her right hand a sceptre, in the left the orb
and cross; at her feet a portcullis; reverse, within a tressure of ten
arches a double rose, with shield of royal arms in centre. _Legend_,
A. DNO. FACTV. EST ISTV. Z. EST MIRA IN. OCVL. NRIS. (“It is the work
of the Lord, and is wonderful in our eyes.”) Rial, the queen crowned
standing in a ship, in her right hand a drawn sword, in her left a
shield of arms; in front, a rose. Same legend. Angel and Angelet, with
St. Michael and the Dragon as on those of preceding monarchs.