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(1659) 6PENCE Maryland Lord Baltimore Sixpence, Small Bust, MULTILICAMINI, Hodder 2-D, W-1070, High R.7, MS62 NGC....
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Description
Finest Known Lord Baltimore Sixpence
MULTILICAMINI Error Reverse, Hodder 2-D, MS62
Ex: Parmelee, Norweb
(1659) 6PENCE Maryland Lord Baltimore Sixpence, Small Bust,
MULTILICAMINI, Hodder 2-D, W-1070, High R.7, MS62 NGC. Ex:
Norweb. 44.3 grains. Although they were centuries and many miles
apart, the problems Lord Baltimore faced with the Maryland coinage
in dealing with the Tower Mint authorities were not all that
different from those that private coiners in Gold Rush California
encountered when dealing with federal officials in Washington. Both
official entities attempted to enforce uniform standards of coinage
that were locally impossible.Silver was plentiful in Great Britain of the late 1600s; between 1521 and 1660, Spanish imports of silver tripled the total silver supply in Europe. The Tower Mint had abandoned the sterling silver standard (925 fineness) by 1560, consequently, vast quantities of groats, sixpence, shillings, and larger silver coins were struck in lower finenesses over the ensuing three centuries. The Lord Baltimore silver coins, on the other hand, were struck in sterling silver but were much under par in British terms.
Philip Mossman writes in Money of the American Colonies and Confederation: A Numismatic, Economic and Historical Correlation (published in 1993 by the American Numismatic Society):
"Massachusetts and Maryland silver coinages share some common features. Both were currencies created for the want of a domestic, circulating medium, having originated without any precise legal authority during the period of the Commonwealth.
"England had 'refused to allow separate colonial mints on the grounds that all the money of the Empire should conform to one single standard,' but such conformity was an unacceptable alternative for the colonists since it would devastate creditor-debtor relationships. In both colonies, their respective monies were of sterling alloy but significantly lighter than their Tower Mint counterparts. The reduced weights of the colonial monies were necessary because of the inherent inequities between colonial and metropolitan exchange rates and monies of account. Had the colonial and Tower shillings been of equal weight, then the bullion price for the Massachusetts and Maryland issues would have far exceeded their commercial value of 12d., thus ensuring an immediate trip to the melting pot and subsequent export."
Variety
Hodder 2-D. Obverse: Small Bust. The lowest hair curl shows two distinct strands that intersect midway to their ends; the letters LIU in CAECILIUS are closely spaced; and the second R in TERRAE is much higher than the first. The A in MARIAE is lower than the M and the bottoms of those letters touch, as does the ligature AE with the I adjacent. The upper stroke ending the ampersand is long and shows a near-90-degree angle. Reverse. The famous MULTILICAMINI error, a misspelling of MULTIPLICAMINI.
The Present Example
The pedigree for this famous coin extends back precisely 125 years to the celebrated Parmelee Collection, and later to the equally illustrious Norweb Collection. The other examples are the Garrett coin, a VF example also with a long provenance -- it was formerly in the collection of Waldo C. Newcomer -- and one found in the Mary Helen Fane Fry estate, auctioned by Morton & Eden in 2002 graded "almost extremely fine" by British standards (realizing $50,379).
This outstanding piece shows a few light ticks but no perceptible wear on well-struck surfaces. The planchet is also top-notch, nearly fully round and well centered for the strike. Heather and golden-green patina is among many admirable qualities that make this a standout example of this extremely rare variety, and one of the most desirable pieces in this incredible run of Lord Baltimore coins.
Ex: Lorin G. Parmelee (New York Coin & Stamp Co., 6/1890), lot 294; H.P. Smith; Brock; University of Pennsylvania; New Netherlands Coin Co. (privately, 3/14/1958); Norweb Collection (Bowers and Merena, 11/1988), lot 3401; Donald Groves Partrick.
Coin Index Numbers: (NGC ID# 2U3K, PCGS# 33)
View all of [The Partrick Collection ]
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