Great Britain. Crown, 1653. S.3214; ESC-6; Dav-3772. Commonwealth, 1649-1660. Obverse; Large shield with cross of England, The COMMONWEALTH OF ENGLAND around. Mint mark sun above. Reverse; Conjoined shields of England and Ireland, featuring Irish harp and St George's cross. Fairly round and with good detail and attractive deep grey toning. Little evidence of wear on this rare memento of the brief period in British history when the nation had no monarch. NGC graded AU-53. Estimate Value $5,000 - 6,000
*All coins struck during the Commonwealth have inscriptions in English instead of Latin. This was in line with the demands (then) of the Protestant religion and the rejection of Catholic/Papal influence. The cross and harp replaced took the place of Royal arms and the portrait of the monarch.
Commonwealth coins were produced in reasonable quantities to satisfy the nation's commercial demands, but after the death of Cromwell in 1658, and the return of the monarchy in 1660, a great proportion of these coins were destroyed, and the surviving examples in high grade are consequently rare.