Isle of Man - Half Penny 1798

November 2024

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The photo doesn't do it justice but this is a really nice (& scarce!) coin from the Isle of Man. The symbol of the triskeles has intrigued me since I was a kid. I was interested in this one because it was struck by the Matthew Boulton Soho works in Birmingham, England. It's a companion piece to the "Cartwheels" of 1797. These were early pieces of the Industrial Revolution and struck on entirely steam driven mint equipment. Boulton was extremely proud of his product and demanded quality. These can be found in gilt copper (gold plated) and in one penny denominations that bronze gilt and solid silver - all very RARE.
OB: George III; RX: triskeles (or triune) w/legend 'QVCOCVNQVE IECERIS STABIT'; The Motto "Quocunque Jeceris Stabit", which translates literally as "whithersoever you throw it, it will stand"; you can also find the sequence shown differently and with slightly varying translations. This motto has been associated with the Isle of Man since about 1300. It was, reportedly, in use before this date by the MacLeods of Lewis as ancient Lords of the Isles of Scotland which, after 1266, included the Isle of Man.

VIEW & DOWNLOAD:
Articles on the "Cartwheel" coinage of Great Britain and Matthew Boulton are linked here:
Cartwheel Penny of 1797 - Thompson: /library/Cartwheel%20Penny%20of%201797%20-%20Thompson.pdf
Cartwheel of Boulton & Watt - Schraeder: /library/Cartwheel%20of%20Boulton%20&%20Watt%20-%20Schraeder.pdf
Britain's Cartwheel Penny: /library/Britains_Cartwheel.pdf
M. Boulton - Father of the Mechanized Press: /library/Boulton%20-%20Father%20of%20the%20Mechanized%20Press.pdf