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1/2 Penny Gustavus Adolphus - Bel * Ona
| Issuer | United Kingdom |
|---|---|
| Year | 1777 |
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| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Evasion tokens (1751-1797) |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Log in to see details |
| Obverse lettering | GUSTAVAS ADOLPHUS |
| Reverse description | Log in to see details |
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| Reverse lettering | BEL * ONA 1777 |
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| Additional information |
This is one of the so-called "Evasion" halfpennies — private tokens struck by entrepreneurs exploiting a legal loophole that prohibited counterfeiting the king's coinage but said nothing about producing coins with entirely fictional monarchs. "Gustavus Adolphus" and the nonsense legend "Bel * Ona" bear no relationship to the actual Swedish king; the name was simply exotic enough to satisfy the technicality. By the 1770s, genuine regal copper had become so scarce that these evasions circulated freely alongside official issues with little public resistance.