Coin and Paper Money Collecting/coin id

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Expert: - 1/29/2010


Question
I have a Victorian one penny coin dated 1890, it has Britannia on reverse as usual but does not have Queen Victoria but a bearded man wearing a hat on the front can you tell me who this is.

Many thanks.
A Evans

Answer

Hi Arthur,
This sounds like a piece of folk art. These are known here in the US as "Hobo nickels" and I have attached a picture of the before and after. The hat and beard seem to be the distinct features that carved coins like this always have.
Having an English penny like this is somewhat uncommon, since they are usually found on small sized coins.
The value would depend on the quality of the carving and overall condition. For an really nice example you can get up to $100 US at auction.
Thanks for the question! =)

Dmitry Livshits

Expertise

My specialty is world coins from the 18th to 20th centuries, primarily non-US foreign coins and related areas such as errors and exonumia (tokens, medals, etc.). I can answer questions relating to identification, grading, selling, preservation and evaluation of such items. In addition to catalog value, I can give you the practical market value and trends for specific types of coins. I will also take questions regarding counterfeits (both modern and antique) and on how to identify them. I am NOT knowledgeable in paper money/banknotes, ancient or "shipwreck" coins. Thank you.

Experience

Collector of world coins since early childhood. Access to a variety of auction records and reference material. You can also find me on Facebook.

Education/Credentials
A.S. in Psychology (2006), B.A. in Forensic Psychology (2008), M.A. in Forensic Psychology (2011).

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