Halfpennies of the second reign of Edward IV (1471–1483) are much like those of the first reign (only a few months earlier) but they were also produced at Durham ( CIVITAS DERAM). Ruler: Elizabeth II — Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 1952 until her death in 2022. In literal use usually written out in full [8] [9] [10] although still never pronounced phonetically: [11] [12] [13] e.g. "A halfpennyworth of chips." [14] In figurative use usually said disparagingly: e.g. "I've been dying for somebody with a ha’porth of wit and intelligence to talk to." [15] "…and saying it doesn't make a halfpennyworth of difference!" [16] [17] (from Alan Bennett's A lady of Letters, written and produced in 1987, some sixteen years after decimalisation and three years after the New Halfpenny—(i.e. the decimal 1 / 2p)—had been demonetised and withdrawn from circulation, thus further illustrating the continued traditional or idiomatic two-syllable pronunciation). Also used in the once common phrase: "daft ha’porth." [8] [9] [10] [18] See also [ edit ] The copper halfpenny weighed between 10.0 and 12.0grams and had a diameter of 28–31 millimetres. The inscription on the obverse, around the king's head, reads CAROLVS A CAROLO– Charles, son of Charles – while the reverse shows BRITAN NIA around the left facing seated Britannia, holding a spray and trident, with the date beneath Britannia. Coins were produced dated 1672, 1673, and 1675. There was indeed a halfpenny issued in 1970 that was still pre-decimal with the same design as the 1967 coin, but this version was not minted for circulation and instead was issued in souvenir sets for collectors. This uncirculated coin served as a farewell to the pre-decimal halfpenny and gave collectors the chance to add a much better condition coin to their collection.

The halfpennies of King James II (1685–1688) were made of tin with a small square plug of copper in the centre. The corrosion properties of tin mean that very few coins survive in a good state of preservation, not helped by the electrochemical reaction between copper and tin. The objects of using tin were to produce coins at a profit while at the same time producing a coin which would be difficult to counterfeit, and at the same time to assist the ailing tin-mining industry. The coins weighed between 10.5 and 11.6grams, with a diameter of 28–30 millimetres. The obverse showed the right-facing effigy of the king with the inscription IACOBVS SECVNDVS– James the Second – while the reverse shows the same Britannia as before. Unusually, the date appears not on the reverse but on the edge of the coin, which has the inscription NVMMORVM FAMVLVS date– an ancillary coinage. The coins were produced in 1685, 1686, and 1687. It’s because these old pennies contain a bronze composition made of 95% copper, 5% zinc. And since copper has gone up in value so much in recent years, the amount of copper in a 1967 penny is now worth about twice the coin’s face value — or a total of about 2 cents. The ship featured on the reverse design, which first appeared on the 1937 halfpenny pattern of Edward VIII, is based on Sir Francis Drake's Golden Hind, in which he became the first Englishman to circumnavigate the globe between 1577 and 1580. Christopher Ironside FSIA 1970, OBE 1971, FRBS 1977 was an English painter and coin designer, particularly known for the reverse sides of the new British coins issued on decimalisation in 1971.

The William III halfpenny appears with various distinct types of engraving of the king's head, Britannia, and the inscriptions, with the quality getting worse as the reign wore on. The coins were copper, weighing 8.9 to 11.5grams, with a diameter of 28–29 millimetres. The king's effigy on the obverse faced right, with the inscription GVLIELMVS TERTIVS– William the Third. Britannia appears on the reverse with the inscription BRITANNIA and the date normally in the exergue beneath Britannia. Coins were produced each year between 1695 and 1701.

Before Decimal Day in 1971, sterling used the Carolingian monetary system, under which the largest unit was a pound divided into 20 shillings, each of 12 pence. Each penny was further divided into 4 farthings, thus a pound contained 480 halfpennies and a shilling contained 24 halfpennies. Cavendish, Richard. “The Farthing’s Last Day.” History Today. December 12, 2010. Accessed December 10, 2020. These special 1967 Lincoln pennies also contain copper, but they’re more valuable for their special finish — a coin type that was produced in limited quantities. The U.S. Mint made just 1,863,344 SMS sets in 1967 — and thus only that many 1967 SMS pennies. Halfpennies in the reign of King Henry VII (1485–1509) were produced mostly at London, but also at Canterbury and York. Henry's coins are fairly distinct from those of the earlier Henries, with the king's front-facing portrait being different in style, and the obverse legend reading HENRIC DEI GRA REX.

a b "University College London Dept. of Psychology and Language Sciences, Faculty of Brain Sciences". Archived from the original on 9 November 2012. Professor Emeritus John Christopher Wells' C.V. (via Internet Archive) This means that, alongside the very large mintage amount, the coin was only in circulation for around 2 years before it ceased to be legal tender; making it very likely that most of the coins would’ve been collected or stored away over the years. The ideal of striking coins with a value equal to their production costs was not long maintained, and the coins were given a face value slightly higher than their metal content, so inevitably counterfeits soon began to appear.

We are indebted to Declan Magee Coins and Numista member Sjoelund for their kind permission to reproduce the images below which list some of the varieties for this series.The halfpennies of King Henry V (1413–1422) are a little easier to identify, but the basic design remained the same as before. The halfpenny of King William IV (1830–1837), produced in 1831, 1834, and 1837, continues the George IV design but with a right-facing bust of the new king, with the inscription GULIELMUS IIII DEI GRATIA date, while the reverse is identical to the previous reigns'.