The Barbados Coppers 1788, 1792: Introduction

Barbados was settled by the English in 1627. The colonists initially tried to plant tobacco and cotton, but were unsuccessful. However, with assistance from the Dutch, they soon developed lucrative sugar plantations, necessitating the importation of large numbers of African slave laborers. It has been estimated that in 1684 the number of black slaves approached 46,000, more than double the population of English colonists, who numbered around 20,000. As on the other West Indies islands, barter was the mainstay of commerce, supplemented with Spanish gold and silver. Following Queen Anne's Proclamation of 1704, lowering the purchasing power of silver coinage throughout the New World, most silver coins left the island. As a result in 1705 £7,000 in paper bills of credit were issued for local circulation.

Throughout the Eighteenth century and into the early Ninteenth century Spanish American silver would be cut into "bitts" for small change and counterstamped for local circulation. From the 1704 Proclamation until 1739 the Spanish American dollar was valued at 8 bitts or 6s. Dollars cut into halves, quarters or eights were 4,2 and 1 bitt respecitvely, with a bitt valued at 9d. From 1740-1799 the debased Spanish two reales pistareen became the principal coin valued at 2 bitts or 1s3d and is found cut in half or quarters as 1 or 1/2 bitt coins (7.5d and 3.75d). During this period the Spanish American eight reales dollar (with a higher silver content per real that the debased pistareen) rose in value to 10 bitts or 6s3d, with half and quarter dollar cut coins passing at 5 and 2.5 bitts, with the eighths going out of use as they were replaced with cut pistareens.

In 1788, at about the same time as some of the newly formed American states were coining coppers, a penny size copper, was minted in England for Barbados. The token is thought to have been privately commissioned by Phillip Gibbs, a local plantation owner. The obverse depicts a the national symbol, a pineapple, with the legend "Barbadoes Penny" and the date 1788. The reverse displays a bust of an African wearing a plumed crown and the legend "I serve". This coin comes in two basic types, one with a small pineapple and small head and the other with a larger pineapple and larger head. Within these categories there are variants based on gradations in the size of the pineapple and the amount of spacing between the numbers in the date. These dies were engraved by John Milton, who in 1789 became assistant engraver at the Royal Mint. Milton records that an issue was struck starting October 4, 1788. Pridmore lists two varieties (10 and 12) which were proofs made for sale to collectors and two varieties produced for circulation (11 and 13). There is another variety which Pridmore attributes to a second issue, possibly produced by J. G. Hancock in Birmingham (Pridmore no. 14). It appears several of the dies eventually ended up with Milton's friend, the London coin dealer Matthew Young. Some overstrikes on British trade tokens and fantasy restrikes in copper and silver, including a variety dated 1791, are attributed to Young.

In 1792, Phillip Gibbs again commissioned copper halfcents and cents to be produced by Milton in England. On the obverse, both denominations depict a crowned Neptune riding a chariot over the sea with the identifying legend "Barbadoes halfpenny" or "Barbadoes penny" above and the date 1792 below. Some identify the figure as George III dressed as Neptune. The reverse is the same as on the 1788 copper penny. These coins regularly circulated but were private token issues without legal tender status. There are also some later undated merchant tokens issues: Moses Tolano (or Tolanto) comissioned farthings and halfpence, Thomas Lawlor comissioned copper and brass farthings, and a T. Bowen used a counterstamp, but all of these items most probably date to the nineteenth century. To see an example of the Tolanto "halfpenny" token click here.

Latest revision: December 23, 1999

References

On these coins see: F. Pridmore, The Coins of the British Commonwealth of Nations to the End of the Reign of George VI 1952, Part 3: Bermuda, British Guiana, British Honduras and the West Indies, London: Spink and Son, 1965, pp. 75-90; Robert Chalmers, History of Currency in the British Colonies  London: n.p., 1893, 46-59; Chester Krause and Clifford Mishler, Standard Catalog of World Coins ed. Colin R. Bruce II Iola, WI: Krause, 1991, vol. 1, pp. 240-241; Andre Clermont and John Wheeler, Spink's Catalogue of British Colonial and Commonwealth Coins  London: Spink, 1986 pp. 72-74; Ray Byrne, "Cut and Counterstamped Issues" in Coinage of the Americas ,   ed. Theodore V. Buttey, Jr., New York: American Numismatic Society, 1973, p. 81 on Barbados.

Section Contents	Barbados Copper Coins