1 Penny - Mary I 1st Period, Type I

Mary I came to the Scottish throne at six days old following her father James V's death at Flintry in December 1542. The coinage of her first period reflects the regency government of her mother, Mary of Guise, operating under constant pressure from English diplomatic and military interference — Henry VIII's so-called "Rough Wooing" campaign aimed at forcing a marriage alliance between the infant queen and the future Edward VI of England.

The billon content at roughly 1/12 fine silver was already deeply debased by the standards of earlier Scottish issues.