Sunday 16 May 2010

Napoleon meets George in Sussex


It started well with this George III 'bull neck' sixpence, 1819.
obverse: GEOR III D G BRITT REX F D (George III by the Grace of God ‘Dei Gratia’, King of the British territories, Defender of the Faith ‘Fidei Defensor’).
reverse: HONI SOIT Q MAL Y PENSE (motto of the English chivalric Order of the Garter meaning "Shame be to him who thinks evil of it") - see wikipedia.
2.71 gms, 19.5 mm
A George III halfpenny, 1770-1775
obverse: GEORGIUS III, reverse REX BRITAN NIA 5.75 gms, 27.5  mm
Napoleon III 1856 DIX CENTIMES
obverse: NAPOLEON III EMPEREUR 1856
Reverse: EMPIRE FRANCAIS DIX CENTIMES
BB below Imperial Eagle is the mint mark of Strasbourg
Engraver: Barre (under bust)
French bronze coins of ten and five centimes circulated widely in Britain during the second half of the 19th century, as pennies and halfpennies due to a shortage of small change. They were used from c1860 to 1887 when they were declared illegal.
9.34 gms, 30 mm
Other finds are part of a spur similar to this one in ukdfd (60 x 55 x 9mm), a silver ring (0.83gm, 17mm) both above, a possible incomplete clothes fastener (38 x 20mm, 3.4gm)
three buttons, a 1921 George V penny in good condition and a threepence with three-headed thrift plant.
Other finds by club members included at least two hammered coins (one above) and this nice seal:
Martin stayed on into the afternoon with me and as he walked back to his car he found this lovely ear scoop, possibly Roman.   ukdfd states: “A Roman Ligula, which is a type of specialist spoon with a narrow cup-shaped bowl at one end. It was used for extracting ointment, ungents, powders and balsams, from tubes and boxes. It could have also been used as a medical probe or an ear scoop.”   The rains held off on a cool day, perfect for detecting. A couple out for a walk asked what I had found so I showed them and they were surprised by the history of the area. I ended a long day tired but content with my finds.

2 comments:

  1. We found an 1854 Napoleon III 10 centime today in woods near Tenterden Kent. Your 'Postcard' was very helpful. Thank you!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thanks, I am delighted that my post has assisted you. My main sources for ids are:
    http://www.ukdfd.co.uk/ukdfddata/search.php
    http://finds.org.uk/database/search/advanced (using object description field)
    and strangely enough Ebay which has given me an immediate id when other sources have failed.

    ReplyDelete

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