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England - 1795

Bebbington`s halfpenny

Obverse:

Laureate bust to right.

Legend:

LONDON & MIDDLESEX . HALFPENNY.

Size:

29.5 mm.

Reverse:

The Prince of Wales`s crest on a shield, under an umbrella.

Legend:

FOR CHANGE . NO . FRAUD . JOHN . BEDDINGTON .

Vern's Comments:

BELL

N^o 2 D&H 254

LONDON Bebbington, J.
   Obverse :-Laureated bust, identity unknown. Legend :- LONDON & MIDDLESEX. HALFPENNY.
   Reverse :-A shield charged with the badge of the Prince of Wales. (A plume of three ostrich feathers argent, enfiled in base by a coronet composed of crosses pattée and fleur-de-lys alternately), surmounted by an open umbrella! Legend :- FOR. CHANGE. NO. FRAUD. JOHN. BEBBINGTON.
   Edge :- Plain.
Diesinker and manufacturer unknown. Scarce.

Comments. The bust may be intended for the Prince of Wales. If so it is very poor. John Bebbington appears to have been an umbrella maker, with a business at No. 8, City Road (a road made in 1761 and formerly called the City New Road).
   The umbrella on the reverse strikes a ludicrous note as if the famous Royal Badge were sheltering from a sudden shower.

Commercial Coins 1787-1804., pp. 96-97

England — Middlesex

D & H 254 — Bebbington`s

Bell Pg: 96-97

O: Laureate bust to right. LONDON & MIDDLESEX . HALFPENNY.

A. 175

R: The Prince of Wales`s crest on a shield, under an umbrella. FOR CHANGE . NO . FRAUD . JOHN . BEDDINGTON .

Bebbington`s halfpenny