DENOMINATIONS.--_Silver._ Crown, Half-crown, Shilling, Sixpence,
Fourpence, Threepence, Twopence, Penny. _Gold._ Guinea (21_s._),
Half-guinea (10_s._ 6_d._), Third-of-guinea or Seven-shilling-piece
(7_s._), Quarter-of-guinea (5_s._ 3_d._), Sovereign (20_s._),
Half-sovereign (10_s._). _Copper._ Twopence, Penny, Halfpenny, Farthing.
OBVERSE.--_Type._ Early issues: dexter bust profile of king, in armour,
laureated, hair long; on his later coinage, bust undraped, laureated,
hair short.
_Legend._ Early: GEORGIVS III DEI GRATIA. Late: GEOR. (or GEORGIVS)
III. D. G. BRITT. (or BRITANNIARVM) REX. F. D. (or FID. DEF.), etc.
Later coinage has the date beneath the head.
REVERSE.--_Type._ Early coinage: Four crowned or uncrowned shields in
cross, as on coins of George I. and II.; the crowns in those instances
where they do not surmount the shields, being placed in the angles
between them. Later coinage: Crown, St. George and the Dragon within
the mottoed garter, Half-crown, crowned shield of royal arms, within
the garter, on which is the motto, HONI SOIT, etc.; quarterly, 1 and
4, England, 2, Scotland, 3, Ireland, Brunswick, etc., on an escutcheon
surmounted by the electorate crown; the shield crowned; on another,
round the garter, is the collar and badge of the order. Shillings,
royal shield encircled by the garter, no legend; Fourpence, Threepence,
Twopence, and Penny, values, either IIII. III. II. I., or in figures;
one mintage, called wire-money, has the value in writing figures, all
the lines of the same strength.
_Legend._ Early: M. B. F. ET. H. REX. F. D. B. ET. L. D. S. R. I. A. T.
ET. E. and date. Late: BRITANNIARVM REX FID DEF OR FIDEI DEFENSOR.
During great scarcity of silver money in 1797 Spanish dollars and
half-dollars were countermarked with a small punch of the king’s
head and put into circulation as current coin of the value of 4_s._
9_d._ This stamp having been counterfeited to a considerable extent,
a different one was adopted in 1804, but it in turn being much
counterfeited, the whole dollar was re-stamped with a fresh octagonal
device, the king’s head, etc., on the obverse, and on the reverse a
figure of Britannia within an oval, crowned with a mural crown, and
having the words BANK OF ENGLAND FIVE SHILLINGS DOLLAR, 1804. Bank
of England tokens, value Six-shillings, Three-shillings, and other
amounts, were also issued. Of these, and the Irish and Madras and other
issues, I must forego particulars.
_Gold._ Obverse, bust laureated; reverse, Guinea, and Half-guinea,
royal arms in a “spade ace” shield, crowned; Sovereign, George
and Dragon within the garter; Half-sovereign, royal shield;
Seven-shillings, a crown.
_Copper._ Early coinage: Halfpennies and Farthings, bust laureated and
in armour, GEORGIVS III REX.; reverse, figure of Britannia, BRITANNIA
and date; Irish, bust undraped; reverse, Irish harp crowned. 1797
and 1799, Twopence and Penny, with raised broad rim, on which is the
legend, indented, bust profile, laureated, hair long, draped, GEORGIVS
III DEI GRATIA REX; Farthing, date under head; reverse, Britannia,
bareheaded, in the right hand an olive branch, in the left a trident;
seated on a rock, shield under her left hand, BRITANNIA, in the
distance a ship (the water cut up to the curve of the coin), date under
figure. Halfpence and Farthings, same figure of Britannia, but without
the broad rim; halfpenny, BRITANNIA, date under figure; Farthing,
BRITANNIA, under figure, 1 FARTHING. In 1806-7, Pence, Halfpence, and
Farthings, bust laureated and draped, hair short, GEORGIVS III. D. G.
REX. and date. Britannia as before, water in a line across, BRITANNIA.
Irish, harp, crowned, HIBERNIA, and date. A large variety of copper
coins for the East India Company, Isle of Man, Prince of Wales Island,
Sierra Leone, Barbadoes, Ceylon, etc., were struck, which need not be
particularized.