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Australia 1923 Halfpenny

Mint:Melbourne Mintage:Est 21,000 Milling:Plain
Weight:5.67 grams Diameter:25.5 mm Composition:97% Copper, 2.5% Zinc, 0.5% Tin
Click to enlarge
Wear
Obverse 1 - English
Click to enlarge
Wear
Reverse A - London
Designer: Sir (Edgar) Bertram Mackennal (Initials 'B.M.' raised on truncation)
Design:Left facing profile of George V
Legend:GEORGIVS V D. G. BRITT: OMN: REX F. D. IND: IMP: •
Denticle Count:156 teeth
Mint mark: None
Designer: William Henry James Blakemore (no attribution)
Design:'ONE HALF PENNY' surrounded by 90 beads contained within concentric circles
Legend:• COMMONWEALTH OF AUSTRALIA •
Denticle Count:148 teeth
Mint mark: None
Characteristics:
Click on Wear to show high points first susceptible to wear
Value
BM
Ad
NP
8
Good
VG10
10
VG
F12
12
about F
F15
15
Fine
VF20
20
good F
VF25
25
about VF
VF30
30
Very Fine
VF35
35
good VF
EF40
40
about EF
EF45
45
Ext Fine
AU50
50
good EF
AU53
53
about Unc
AU55
58+
virt Unc
AU58
58-60
Uncirc
MS60
58-61
Uncirc
MS61
58-62
Uncirc
MS62
63-64
Choice Unc
MS63
64-65
near Gem
MS64
65-66
Gem
MS65
66-67
Gem
MS66
67-68
Gem
MS67
68
near Flaw
MS68
69
virt Flaw
MS69
70
Flawless
MS70
Proof
B
$300
+
NGC
1
 
PCGS
1
 
$400
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
3
 
$600
+
NGC
11
 
PCGS
5
 
$1250
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
14
 
$1500
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
27
 
$1750
+
NGC
10
 
PCGS
53
 
$2250
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
65
 
$2750
+
NGC
6
 
PCGS
67
 
$4000
+
NGC
15
 
PCGS
62
 
$6000
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
20
 
$9000
+
NGC
1
 
PCGS
14
 
$15000
+
NGC
5
 
PCGS
14
 
$25000
+
NGC
2
 
PCGS
9
 
$35000
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
$50000
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
$75000
+
NGC
1
 
PCGS
2
 
$125000
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
1
 
$175000
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
-
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
-
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
-
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
-
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
-
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
-
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
Y
RB
"
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
"
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
"
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
"
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
"
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
"
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
"
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
"
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
$7500
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
1
 
$10000
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
-
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
-
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
-
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
-
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
-
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
-
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
-
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
-
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
-
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
-
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
-
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
-
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
-
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
-
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
Y
R
"
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
"
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
"
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
"
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
"
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
"
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
"
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
"
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
"
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
"
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
"
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
"
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
-
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
-
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
-
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
-
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
-
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
-
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
-
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
-
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
-
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
-
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
-
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
-
+
NGC
 
 
PCGS
 
 
Y
BM
Benchmark
Ad
Adjectival
NP
NGC/PCGS
Collectable grades
Does not exist by definition

Investment grades
-
Unlikely to exist

Aspirational grades
BV
Bullion or metal value

Not known in these grades
''
Value as above
Proof
Y (Yes)
N (Not known)
Last updated March 2024
Notes:
In July 1923, the Melbourne Mint received an order to produce £1,000 of halfpennies and in September of that year three pairs of dies were prepared. This was the first time that the Melbourne Mint had struck halfpennies and the dies were obviously of a poor standard as one pair of dies was immediately returned to the workshop. The two remaining pairs that were used deteriorated so quickly that the vast majority of 1923 halfpennies exhibit diagnostic die cracks particularly in the obverse legend. Another tell-tale marker of the 1923 Halfpenny also relates to the obverse. Two of the high-grade coins that have been observed have grainy or porous services on the obverse which indicates that at least one of the obverse dies that was used was rusty indicating prior use, thus raising the prospect that they were redundant dies recalled from the Sydney Mint. Only a small number of coins were struck before the dies ultimately failed making this one of the rarest halfpennies and so open to forgery.

The most common 1923 Halfpenny forgery found in old collections involved removing parts of the left side of the '8' in the date of the 1928 Halfpenny to approximate a '3'. Besides the shape of the resultant '3' being thinner in form, the centre divide is also straight rather than tilted down as occurs on the 1923 Halfpenny. The legend on the reverse of the 1923 Halfpenny is also straight based when compared to that of the 1928 Halfpenny which is slightly curved.

Another commonly found forgery involved replacing the first '3' in the date of a 1933 Halfpenny with a '2', as most people are inclined to look at the last digit when determining whether a 1923 Halfpenny is genuine. Even if you can't pick the altered date you should look to the legend, as the 1933 Halfpenny has strong curvature to the base of the letters on the reverse when compared to the straight based letters found on the 1923 Halfpenny.