January 16, 2024

Part 3
Thirteen Pence to the Shilling
Queen Victoria Bronze Issues


From the Shield on an 1870 Proof One Thirteenth of a Shilling

Since the price of copper was becoming expensive, it was decided by the States to change the metal composition of their coinage. On December 8, 1864, £2000 worth of bronze coins (or as the act reads “as the copper money lately coined in England”) was authorized. These bronze coins have a coroneted bust, an oak-leaf scroll, and the denomination written instead of using a fraction. The initial 1866 issue consisted of 173,333 pence and 173,333 halfpence, which equates to £1000. As for the old copper coins, an act, dated January 29, 1869, ordered their withdrawal for recoining into the new bronze coins.

From the “The Antiquary” of August 12, 1871.

missing image

Be sure to click on the camera icon to review the die varieties or
the letter icon to see images using a digital microscope.

It was during this time, that the merchants of Jersey were getting frustrated with having 13 pence to the shilling instead of the English standard of 12 pence to the shilling. The Lords Commissioners of Her Majesty's Treasury on March 15, 1870, recommended to the States whether advantage should be taken at this time to assimilate the bronze coinage of Jersey with that of the United Kingdom. On March 31, 1870, the response was that the “States of the Island are not disposed to change the nominal value of their copper coinage.”¹ Finally on February 25, 1876, at act passed stating that Jersey coinage would be denominated as a 12th, 24th, and 48th of a shilling following the English standard. The old coins based upon 13 pence to the shilling were demonetized on December 31, 1876.²

Things to note about this series:

The coin's metal content is 95% copper, 4% tin, and 1% zinc
The legend on the reverse is now divided by stops (not colons).
The coinages of 1870 and 1871 were minted from the metal obtained from the old withdrawn copper coins.³ ;
The total nominal value of the coins for each year is £1000.
There are various die varieties for most of these coins. Review “The Rarity of Various Jersey Coins” site for this information.
For more information about Jersey during this time, you can read the article “The Channel Islands”, which appeared in the June 1875 issue of Harper's New Monthly Magazine.
During this period, many newspaper articles discussed the state of Jersey's coinage and bank notes. Many were written complaining about the lack of coins, the confusion between 12 and 13 pence, foreign coins, and the "Reign of Rags."
Although, the act of 1864 required bronze coins, the 1865 proof coins were minted in copper.


From “The GentleMan's Magazine” of July 1866.


Unique Bronze Pattern 1/26 shilling, undated (1866), as currency issue but without obverse legend

This unique bronze pattern comes from the collections of Fred Pridmore, R. J. Ford and A.L.T. McCammon. It was fought over at the Pridmore sale in 1981 by both Ford and McCammon. Very used to being unchallenged in his quest to purchase the most expensive proofs and patterns, Richard Ford was aggrieved to have been bid up to £2,600 for this coin by McCammon. He was, however, the successful purchaser, but McCammon later secured the coin for his collection some nine years later at exactly the same price.⁴


From “Frasier's Magazine New Series, Volume XII, July To December 1875”

From “The GentleMan's Magazine” of July 1866.

From “Frasier's Magazine New Series,
Volume XII, July To December 1875”

Unique Bronze Pattern 1/26 shilling, undated (1866),
as currency issue but without obverse legend.

This unique bronze pattern comes from the collections of Fred Pridmore, R. J. Ford and A.L.T. McCammon. It was fought over at the Pridmore sale in 1981 by both Ford and McCammon. Very used to being unchallenged in his quest to purchase the most expensive proofs and patterns, Richard Ford was aggrieved to have been bid up to £2,600 for this coin by McCammon. He was, however, the successful purchaser, but McCammon later secured the coin for his collection some nine years later at exactly the same price.⁴

The Obverse from an 1866 One Twenty-Sixth of a Shilling
Note the striations beneath the chin and the curl.

One Twenty-Sixth of a Shilling 1866, 1870, and 1871 (click on image to enlarge)

    Year    J#    KM#   Mintage  Diameter     
    1866    39     4    173,333   24.25                
    1870    40          173,333   24.25          
    1871    41          173,333   24.30

In 1977, Jersey issued this stamp featuring
this coin for the "Centenary of Currency Reform."

In The Standard Catalog of World Coins, Krause states the mintages for both the half penny and penny for 1870 and 1871 as 160,000. Unfortunately, Krause used 12 pence to the shilling instead of the correct 13 pence to the shilling to compute their numbers. Pridmore, Marshall-Fraser, and McCammon all agree that the correct number should be 173,333.

Things to note:

The weight of this coin corresponds with the English bronze halfpenny but the size is 1.2 mm smaller.
There are no initials of the designer on the truncation.
The denomination now appears as words instead of a fraction.
There are several die cracks on some of the dies used for the 1866 issue,
Striations are visible on the obverse of the 1866 and 1870 issues due to die clashing.
On the 1871 issue, the leopards have incuse spots, and the shield is redecorated.
Most 1871 coins are weakly struck.
Proofs exist for all issues.

Proof 1866 1/26 shilling with the LCW.

Proof 1866 1/26 shilling without the LCW.

One Thirteenth of a Shilling 1866, 1870, and 1871 (click on image to enlarge)

    Year    J#    KM#   Mintage  Diameter     
    1866     9     5    173,333   29.35               
    1870    10          173,333   29.35             
    1871    11          173,333   29.35

From the Shield on an 1871 Proof One Thirteenth of a Shilling

Things to note:

Although the weight corresponds with the English bronze penny, the size is 1.6 mm smaller.
Unlike the one twenty-sixth of a shilling coin, the initials of L.C.W. for Leonard Charles Wyon are incused on the truncation.
The denomination now appears as a word instead of a fraction.
Striations are visible on the obverse of all three coins.
On some varieties of the 1870 issue, many items are repunched.
On the 1871 issue, the leopards have incuse spots, and the shield is redecorated.
Proofs exist for all issues. There are two varieties for the 1866 proof coin, with and without LCW on the bust.
In 1870, the Royal Mint struck coins consisting of 4 different metals (gold, silver, nickel, and bronze) and no less than 24 different denominations for Britain, Newfoundland, Canada, Jamaica, and Jersey.
The same note can be said for the year 1871 but instead of Newfoundland, coins were minted for the Straits Settlements and there were only 22 denominations.

The Obverse from an 1870 One Thirteenth of a Shilling

The Reverse from an 1870 One Thirteenth of a Shilling

The Obverse from an 1871 One Thirteenth of a Shilling

The Reverse from an 1871 One Thirteenth of a Shilling

The Obverse 1870 One Twenty-Sixth of a Shilling

The Reverse 1870 One Twenty-Sixth of a Shilling

The International Bank operated from 1865 through 1868


From the May issue of the Bankers' Magazine, Journal of the Money Market, and Commercial Digest. Volume XXXIV. January to December, 1874. Page 418.

A banknote issued by The Jersey States, Committee for Harbours unissued £1, 1 June 1874.

1. HO 45/8231, Jersey: Coinage: substitution of bronze for copper and the suggestion that the islands' coinage assimilate that of England. 1869 - 1870. Home Office Papers, The Public Record Office, Kew, Richmond, Surrey, UK.

2. W. A. Browne, The Merchants' Handbook of Money, Weights and Measures, with their British Equivalents (London, 1879). p. 32.

3. Lobel, Davidson, Hailstone, and Calligas, Coincraft's Standard Catalogue of the Coins of Scotland, Ireland, Channel Islands & Isle of Man (London: Polestar Wheatons Ltd., 1999). pp. 320 and 321.

4. A. H. Baldwin & Sons LTD, The Arielle Collection of British Colonial Coins, Part 2 Europe, Asia, Oceania and the Caribbean. Auction 86

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Part 3Thirteen Pence to the ShillingQueen Victoria Bronze Issues

Part 3
Thirteen Pence to the Shilling
Queen Victoria Bronze Issues