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1/2 Penny Claudius Romanus - May Britons Rule
| Issuer | United Kingdom |
|---|---|
| Year | 1779 |
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| Shape | Round |
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| Reverse description | The reverse features a standing or seated Britannia-like female figure in the central field, consistent with the conventional evasion token design that mimics the Britannia motif of contemporary British halfpennies. The patriotic legend MAY BRITONS RULE encircles the figure, with the date 1779 appearing in the lower portion of the design. The rendering is typical of the crude but intentionally evasive workmanship characteristic of privately struck copper tokens of this period. |
| Reverse script | Latin |
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| Additional information |
This is a privately issued token, not a Royal Mint product — "Claudius Romanus" pieces circulated during the acute copper shortage of the late 18th century, when official halfpenny production had all but ceased and merchants, manufacturers, and entrepreneurs flooded the market with their own copper. The Atkins reference places this firmly within the conder token tradition catalogued by James Atkins in his 1892 work The Tokens of the Eighteenth Century.
The "May Britons Rule" motto reflects the muscular patriotic sentiment common to tokens of the American Revolutionary War period — 1779 being a year when British military fortunes were deteriorating on multiple fronts simultaneously.