Catalog
5 'Pence' Griqua Town
| Issuer | London Missionary Society |
|---|---|
| Year | 1814-1816 |
| Type | Emergency coin |
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|---|---|
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| Reverse lettering | GRIQUA I I I I I TOWN (inverted) |
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| Mintage | ND (1814-1816) |
| Additional information |
The London Missionary Society had no business minting coins — and legally, it didn't. These pieces were struck privately to address a chronic shortage of small change in the remote Northern Cape settlement, where barter had become the default medium of exchange. The LMS operated Griqua Town as a mission station among the Griqua people, and the coinage was a pragmatic internal solution rather than any sanctioned monetary instrument.
The addition of tin to the silver alloy is characteristic of the type and likely reflects the constraints of private striking rather than deliberate metallurgical policy.