1771 (retrograde) Contemporary Counterfeit Halfpenny. George III English Type. Rubber Lady Family. Peck Coin zz. AK-4. Choice Very Fine.108.2 grains. One of the iconic counterfeit halfpennies among over 10,000 different varieties thought to exist, the Peck Coin zz always causes a stir when one of the handful of known specimens comes to market. The design motifs are completely reversed, George III facing left instead of right, as is Britannia, which faces right instead of left, and the legends begin at the lower right and go counterclockwise, rather than beginning at the lower left and running clockwise, as is normal. In addition, some letters are randomly upside down, and the die sinker inexplicably vacillated in the case of the V of GEORGIVS, repunching that letter rotated 180 degrees, as if correcting that one letter mattered or even made any sense in the context of the otherwise totally blundered dies! In describing the Michael K. Ringo specimen that we sold in 2008, we wrote: The portrait faces left and shows a slit for an eye that resembles a medieval armored helmet. V of GEORGIVS was punched upside down and then inverted and punched again. The denticles are crude slashes with an engraving tool. On the reverse, the olive branch looks like a skein of yarn and the stripes on the English shield more closely resembles a slapdash series of engraving lines. The same crude denticles as on the obverse are seen on the reverse, framing a crudely defined but well struck Britannia. Listed as Atkins-230, Mike wondered if this variety was by the same maker as EPN [Eric P. Newman] GB 1769, 1776? Ever the astute observer, Mike was onto something, as Peck Coin zz appears to show a number of stylistic and other similarities to the Rubber Lady Family (i.e. the coins he is referring to as EPN GB 1769, 1776) as outlined in the chapter on that family in the 2018 reference <em>Contemporary Counterfeit Halfpenny & Farthing Families</em>. This reference stops short of declaring this die pairing a part of the Rubber Lady Family, though the argument leaves <em>us </em>fully convinced. We have sold 2 of these in the more distant past, the EF Ringo coin in 2008 for $4312.50, and the VF-30 Anton-Kesse plate coin in 2012 for $2875. Both were lovely examples, as is this one, which sports glossy, chocolate brown surfaces with areas of golden brown intermixed and will undoubtedly attract the same fierce competition.From the Sydney F. Martin Collection. Earlier ex Richard August, November 2007.
