Proof Coin Collection from Australia's 'Proclamation' era (nine coins)

The superb quality of these coins, and their rarity, is affirmed by the provenance of Wayte Raymond and John Jay Pitman. Both collectors were meticulous in the selection of their coins. And the notation of their background.

These coins eventually came onto the open market in 1999 when the Pitman collection was sold at auction in the U.S. This collection of nine superb ‘colonial’ proof coins is comprised of:

1787 George III Proof Silver Sixpence - Coin 1.
A choice proof with blue/violet toning and mirror fields purchased from Spink London in 1946.

1787 George III Proof Silver Shilling - Coin 2.
As above, a choice proof with blue/violet toning and mirror fields purchased from Spink London in 1946.

1788 George III Proof Copper Halfpenny - Coin 3.
Evenly toned with a distinctively handsome blue hue. Beautifully glossy.

1797 George III Proof Copper Halfpenny. - Coin 4.
Superb quality, smooth chocolate brown fields. Flawless.

1797 George III Proof Copper ‘Cartwheel’ Penny - Coin 5.
A hefty coin and very impressive when it is struck to proof quality.

1797 George III Proof Copper ‘Cartwheel’ Twopence - Coin 6.
Impressive and even more imposing than the penny detailed above.

1799 George III Proof Farthing - Coin 7.
Subtle pink and orange hues on each side of this colonial gem. Stunning. 

1799 George III Proof Halfpenny - Coin 8.
Highly detailed design and even patina.

1804 George III Bank of England Proof Five Shillings - Coin 9.
A very scarce proof with brilliant mirror fields and beautiful toning, purchased from Spink London in 1949 for £11.20.

How and why such coins have come to be embraced by the Australian coin market makes for a fascinating story.

The penal colony of New South Wales was settled in 1788. And struck its first coins in 1813, the Holey Dollar and Dump.

The time lag prompts many collectors to ask … so what was the money supply in the intervening years?

Local currency came in the form of British and foreign coins that filtered their way into the colony in the pockets of settlers and incoming vessels.

Coins such as the classic and imposing Cartwheel Penny and the even more imposing Twopence of Mathew Boulton, struck at the famous Soho Mint in London. And the George III silver Shilling and Sixpence and the George III copper Penny and Halfpenny.

Many of these coins came to be formally recognised in Governor King’s Proclamation of 1800 and for most collectors the Proclamation era is seen as the beginning of numismatics in Australia.