Blank for a Brass Threepence?

[HistoricCoinage]

I've come across what I believe to be a blank for a nickel brass threepence. It weighs 6.84 grams which fits, but I've never come across one before as I imagine they'd have been hard to smuggle out of the Mint. (I also wasn't expecting it to be circular as I'd never thought about how the geometric shape would've later been made!).

Has anyone else come across something similar? 

 

[copper123]

I would have thought it would be made with sides - do you have any proof its a royal mint product ?

There are many enginering places in the uk or abroad that could make what you have .

[HistoricCoinage]

27 minutes ago, copper123 said:

I would have thought it would be made with sides - do you have any proof its a royal mint product ?

There are many enginering places in the uk or abroad that could make what you have .

No proof, sadly. It's from a collection formed in the '40s and '50s I'm working my way through.

[ozjohn]

1 hour ago, copper123 said:

I would have thought it would be made with sides - do you have any proof its a royal mint product ?

There are many enginering places in the uk or abroad that could make what you have .

I agree. I've seen the blanks for the 50 cent coin at the RAM in Canberra and they were  cut to shape prior to striking. In addition the examples shown seem a bit rough to be a coin blank.

[blakeyboy]

Hmm..I wold get some vernier callipers on that, and if the diameter happens to be a standard imperial size, 

then that's been cut from a bar.

[Martinminerva]

17 hours ago, HistoricCoinage said:

I also wasn't expecting it to be circular as I'd never thought about how the geometric shape would've later been made!).

Whilst the mint does indeed use heptagonally pre-shaped blanks for striking 20p's and 50p's, for the dodecahedral brass threepences and now the new pounds, they use circular blanks (the external angles are more shallow and can be squeezed ok into the 12 sided collars that are used). Proof of this is both during WW2 when steel was at a premium, the mint used "blunter" cornered collars which lasted longer than the normal sharp cornered ones, leading to slightly smoother angled coins, and also with this 1960 threepence brockage which has been struck proud of its collar and retains its circular shape... It weighs 6.85 grams too, so I am perfectly happy your piece is a legitimate blank. The rough surfaces and edges are no problem either - they are all squeezed out smooth when the annealed blank goes through the press. Other denomination blanks I have are similarly a bit rough and ready!

[Peckris 2]

23 hours ago, ozjohn said:

I agree. I've seen the blanks for the 50 cent coin at the RAM in Canberra and they were  cut to shape prior to striking. In addition the examples shown seem a bit rough to be a coin blank.

Is that Royal Albert Museum by any chance? I only ask because we have a RAM and that's what it stands for.

[HistoricCoinage]

Thanks for your replies, everyone! I'll do some more digging. 

12 minutes ago, Peckris 2 said:

Is that Royal Albert Museum by any chance? I only ask because we have a RAM and that's wh🤭at it stands for.

I would assume the Royal Australian Mint, judging by John's alias. 

[ozjohn]

1 hour ago, Peckris 2 said:

Is that Royal Albert Museum by any chance? I only ask because we have a RAM and that's what it stands for.

Royal Australian Mint.,

Denison St.,

Canberra,

ACT,*  2600

*ACT Australian Capitol Territory

[oldcopper]

Talking of brass thrupennies, has anyone looked closely at the Ed VIII one coming up in Sovereign Rarities tomorrow?

I wonder if it's even made of brass. The colour is very yellowy, and compares exactly with the 1806 gilt penny a few lots later, but perhaps more importantly, and this is most apparent if anyone's got a printed catalogue (with the big blow-up of it on the front cover), there seems to be some localised peeling of the surface colour to reveal brown metal (ie copper) underneath, around the truncation and back of the hair. It may just be an optical illusion, but  could this be a mint trial in copper subsequently covered with a yellow metal coating?

It's lightweight (~6g), but that doesn't neccesarily mean anything, as Peck lists even lighter and thus thinner-flan variants.

I should add i haven't seen it in the hand.

Edited September 20, 2022 by oldcopper

[Rob]

I concur

[Martinminerva]

Can you post a picture? Or a link?

 

[copper123]

6 hours ago, oldcopper said:

Talking of brass thrupennies, has anyone looked closely at the Ed VIII one coming up in Sovereign Rarities tomorrow?

I wonder if it's even made of brass. The colour is very yellowy, and compares exactly with the 1806 gilt penny a few lots later, but perhaps more importantly, and this is most apparent if anyone's got a printed catalogue (with the big blow-up of it on the front cover), there seems to be some localised peeling of the surface colour to reveal brown metal (ie copper) underneath, around the truncation and back of the hair. It may just be an optical illusion, but  could this be a mint trial in copper subsequently covered with a yellow metal coating?

It's lightweight (~6g), but that doesn't neccesarily mean anything, as Peck lists even lighter and thus thinner-flan variants.

I should add i haven't seen it in the hand.

As these were the first pressings they were experimental so different alloys may have been used