Lot 101
'Benchmark' Collection spare and the 'second highest' grade
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Exhibited:
- Coins, Australia & New Zealand Literature:
- Coins, Monies & Stamps Medium:
- 355 Circa:
- Collectibles Notes:
- The 'Indian' obverse dies used to produce the majority of 1930 pennies were far from exhausted and legend has it that one was coupled with a 193_ 'London' reverse die (of a type to which an '0' had previously been added to produce the 1930 penny) resulting in the 1931 'Dropped 1 - Indian' obverse Penny. The addition of the '1' to the 'London' die was certainly mis-aligned resulting in the 'Dropped 1' variety, but a study of the reverse die shows no connection to the 1930 reverse penny die, which like either the 1929 'Melbourne altered' reverse on which that coin appears to be based, exhibits dramatic serifying on the base of the letters. The 1931 'Dropped 1' reverse on the other hand closely resembles the unaltered 'London' reverse with straight based lettering that was re-introduced on the 1923 Penny. The Melbourne Mint had received a new partly dated hub of this type ie a 'London' 193_ reverse on November 7th 1930, and in a rush to production mis-aligned the placement of the '1' in the date when adding it to the subsequent master die. This combination of dies was an experimental run and Mint records show "nil thousand production" of the 1931 'Dropped 1 - Indian' obverse Penny , i.e. less than 1,000 coins (estimate 500) were originally produced of which no more than 50 have emerged. This coin is usually found in no better than VG - Fine condition and is extremely rare in higher grades. In recent years there has been discussion of a new variety of the 1931 'Dropped 1 - Indian' obverse Penny based on a 'London Am' reverse that has been labelled the 'Unicorn' Penny. The chronology suggests that this coin is unlikely to exist and high-resolution photographs of an example sighted by the author suggest that it was not Mint-struck but is an elaborate 'double-digit' forgery based on a 1924 'Indian' obverse die Penny, which like the 1929 'Indian' obverse die Penny also has a 'London Am' reverse. It is noted that the Numismatic Association of Australia has provided imprimatur to the 'Unicorn' Penny by publishing an article in its journal dismissing among others the reverse of 'a' 1924 'Indian' obverse die Penny as a possible source for any subterfuge. What is lacking in this scholarship is the observation that the 1924 'Indian' obverse die Penny is only difficult to acquire in high-grade, and with an estimated mintage of 250,000 it would suggest that on average 5 - 6 reverse dies were employed in its production. These reverses were not necessarily identical and as only 'one' suspect in the 1924 reverse dies has been eliminated from the line-up the others remain 'prime suspects' as the altered die responsible of the 'Unicorn' Penny.
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| From: | To: | Increments: |
|---|---|---|
| A$0 | A$249 | A$5 |
| A$250 | A$999 | A$10 |
| A$1,000 | A$4,999 | A$25 |
| A$5,000 | A$9,999 | A$50 |
| A$10,000 + | A$100 |