Catalog
2 Pence - Rosa Americana Pattern
| Issuer | United States (pre-federal and private territorial) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1724 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Pound |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | Log in to see details |
| Diameter | Log in to see details |
| Thickness | Log in to see details |
| Shape | Log in to see details |
| Technique | Log in to see details |
| Orientation | Log in to see details |
| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
| Reference(s) | Log in to see details |
| Obverse description | Laureate and draped bust of King George I facing right, with flowing curled hair adorned with a laurel sprig, occupying the central field. The effigy is rendered in high relief with fine engraving detail characteristic of early eighteenth-century English coinage. The circular legend surrounds the bust close to the milled border. |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Log in to see details |
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | Log in to see details |
| Reverse script | Latin |
| Reverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Edge | Log in to see details |
| Mint | Log in to see details |
| Mintage | Log in to see details |
| Additional information |
William Wood obtained his patent to produce Rosa Americana coinage through a royal grant secured — almost certainly by bribery — via the Duchess of Kendal, a mistress of George I. The coins were intended for circulation in the American colonies, but colonial merchants rejected them almost universally, objecting both to the monopoly arrangement and to the quality of the copper alloy Wood used, which contemporaries described as brittle and poorly refined.
The 1724 twopence pattern was never released for general circulation. Wood's entire colonial coinage venture collapsed shortly after, undercut by relentless opposition from figures including Jonathan Swift, whose Drapier's Letters — written against a parallel Wood coinage scheme for Ireland — poisoned public opinion on both sides of the Atlantic.