DENOMINATIONS.--_Silver._ Crown, Half-crown, Shilling, Sixpence,
Groat, Threepence, Half-groat, Three-halfpence, Penny, Three-farthing,
Halfpenny. _Gold._ Sovereign or Double-rial, Rial, Pound-sovereign,
Half-sovereign, Crown, Half-crown, Angel, Angelet, Quarter-angel.
OBVERSE.--_Type._ Silver. Crown and Half-crown, sinister bust profile,
crowned, open double-arched crown, hair turned back, draped, robe with
wide puffed sleeves, stiff frill round the neck; in the right hand
the sceptre, the orb as if held in the left. The Shilling, Sixpence,
Groat, Threepence, Half-groat, Three-halfpence, Penny, Three-farthing,
Halfpenny, and Farthing have also the bust profile, crowned with a
single-arched crown, hair long and flowing down the back, draped
robe, much plainer than before, and having no sceptre or orb.[4] The
Sixpence, Threepence, Three-halfpence, and Three-farthing pieces are
distinguished from the others by having the Tudor rose behind the head.
It was in reference to this distinguishing mark of a rose behind the
head that the satirist on costumes wrote:--
“... Behind her head a rose
That people cry, ‘Lo! there Three-farthings goes!’”
[4] One variety, the “Pudsey” Shilling and Sixpence, said to have been
used in the wars in Ireland, has an escallop shell filling the inner
circle.
The commonest Halfpenny has a portcullis instead of the bust; the
one with the bust is extremely rare. The “milled” money is neater in
execution than the earlier “hammered” pieces. The “portcullis” money,
struck in 1601 for foreign use, has on the obverse the royal arms,
surmounted by a crown, between the initials E. and R., each crowned,
and the usual name and titles of the queen; reverse, a portcullis
crowned, and the POSVI, etc., legend.
_Legend._ E. ELIZ. ELIZAB. or ELIZABETH.--D. G. ANG. FR. (or FRA.) ET.
HIB. (or HIBER.) REG. (REGI or REGINA). Three-halfpence, Penny, etc.,
E. R.,--E. D. G. ROSA SINE SPINA.
REVERSE.--_Type._ Cross fleury, or plain cross, and shield of France
and England; the shield on the crown mantled. Halfpenny, cross and
pellets. Farthing, crowned monogram of name.
_Legend._ POSVI DEVM ADIVTOREM MEVM, or its abbreviations; or name of
town.
_Gold._ Sovereign, or Double-rial, same general type as the Sovereign
of Mary. Pound-sovereign, Half-sovereign, Crown and Half-crown,
sinister bust fully robed, crowned with an open crown of two, four,
or five arches. Rial, with the queen in a large ruff, standing in a
ship, crowned, etc. Angels, Angelets, and Quarter-angels, St. Michael
and the Dragon; reverse, a ship, royal shield in front, surmounted by
a cross, with E. and a rose. Some of the legends on the reverses of
gold coins are, A DNO. FACTV. EST ISTVD ET EST MIRAB. IN OCVL. NRS;
IHS. AVT TRANSIENS PER MEDIV. ILLORVM IBAT; SCVTVM FIDEI PROTEGET
EAM; and one Rial, referring to the taking of Virginia by Sir Walter
Raleigh, has on its obverse ELIZAB [ETHA] D [EI] G [RATIA] ANG [LIÆ]
FR[ANCIÆ]ETM[AGNÆ]PR[OVINCIÆ]C[APTÆ]A[VSPICIIS]I[LLIVS] REGINA
(“Elizabeth, by the Grace of God, Queen of England, France, and the
Great Province captured under her auspices”).
In this reign pattern copper coins were struck, but never issued. The
Penny bore on the obverse a full-face portrait of the queen, and the
words THE PLEDGE OF; and on the reverse the crowned monogram, and the
continuation of the legend, A PENNY, and date 1601. Other pattern
pieces were also struck of copper, lead, pewter, and leather, but are
all extremely rare.