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Auction: 5033 - The Colin Adams Collection of Halfcrowns
Lot: 224

Charles I, Exeter mint, Halfcrown, 14.30g., 1645, ill-conformed Exeter horseman walking left, holding sword upright, horse with twisted tail, rev. oval shield garnished with five small and one large scroll, date to left of mintmark, pellet stops, m.m. rose (JGB 1056 (this coin); Besly N44 (this coin); N.2568; S.3076) the obverse struck from a worn obverse die, as usual with this date, almost very fine, the reverse better, very rare Estimate £ 1,000-1,200PROVENANCE: Mrs Street, collection purchased privately by R Marsham post mortem R Marsham, Sotheby, 19 November 1888, lot 616 H Montagu, Sotheby, 13 November 1896, lot 456 R C Lockett, Glendining, 11 October 1956, lot 2524 J G Brooker, SCBI 33, no.1056 The sale of the collection formed by The Hon. R Marsham, at Sotheby in 1888, was held at a time when many of the great names of late 19th century numismatics – Montagu, Murdoch, Rostron, Richardson, Moon – were in competitive pursuit of rare and desirable coins. It was, as a result, one of the most successful of all numismatic auctions. Montagu profusely annotated his own copy of the Marsham catalogue and added a introduction ´… Mr Marsham was a real scientist and Antiquarian and there was infinitely more numismatic merit and interest in his collection than in many of those which possess more pretentious pieces & in particular, delight in proofs & patterns of no greater antiquity than the time of George III*….The prices ruled exceptionally and unexpectedly high & the owner was himself greatly surprised at the grand result, which yielded him a very considerable profit over and above what the collection cost him (always leaving the question of interest on money out of the reckoning)´. *(Montagu had just sold his own superb collection of patterns and proofs from George I onwards to Spink by private treaty when this note was penned) This Exeter Halfcrown is the only example of this die pairing (N44) recorded by Besly. It was purchased at the Marsham sale, lot 616, in the name of ´Jodrel´, otherwise unknown. Montagu explains -´Spink bought for me at the sale, but for purposes of his own several lots were bought by the auctioneers at his instance in assumed names. His idea was that he thereby disarmed competition in connection with certain more desirable pieces´. This coin fetched £7-15-0, so the ploy was not entirely successful.

Sold for
£1,850