Catalog
1 Lepton
| Issuer | Ionian Islands, United States of the (1815-1864) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1834-1862 |
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| Value | 1 Lepton (1/5) |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | Britannia is depicted seated in three-quarter profile facing right, helmeted and draped in classical robes. She rests her right hand upon a long trident held upright beside her, while her left arm leans on a large oval shield decorated with the Union Jack, placed at her side. The allegorical figure is rendered in a neoclassical style consistent with contemporary British coinage design. The Latin legend BRITANNIA. arcs around the upper field, and the design is framed by a beaded border. |
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| Reverse lettering | BRITANNIA. (Translation: Britain) |
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| Additional information |
The Ionian Islands operated as a British protectorate under the nominal sovereignty of a local senate, a constitutional fiction that satisfied neither the islanders nor the Greeks on the mainland. The lepton series issued under this arrangement was struck at the Royal Mint in London — an unremarkable administrative decision that nonetheless left these coins with a consistency of quality unusual for the region and period.
Greek unification absorbed the islands in 1864, rendering the entire series obsolete almost overnight. Circulated survivors are common; the long date range reflects restriking rather than continuous new issue.